Chesapeake-Built River Boat to Cruise Mississippi & Ohio Rivers

The 280 foot Riverboat Queen of the Mississippi is nearing completion at Chesapeake Shipbuilding in Salisbury, on Maryland's Eastern Shore. As explained in this article by Candus Thomson of the Baltimore Sun, the expected August 4, 2012 maiden voyage of the paddle-boat indicates a revival of inland river cruising on the Mississippi. The operator and builder of the Queen of Mississippi, American Cruise Lines, expects a growth market and has begun construction of another riverboat at its Salisbury shipyard.

In addition to routes on the lower and upper Mississippi, several cruises to Cincinnati and Pittsburgh are scheduled in the Fall of 2012. Various ports of call comprise each trip. For example the Ohio River trips will stop in Point Pleasant, WV, Marietta, OH, and Wheeling, WV among other destinations.

Kentucky House Funds Dredging & Bridge Repairs

The Kentucky House of Representatives, in the recently passed House Bill 2 in the current special session, has appropriated $500,000 per year for the next two fiscal years for "Riverfront Improvement." The funds to "improve public riverports within Kentucky," are to be "limited to dredging and maintenace of access." According to the Bill, the Secretary of the Transportation Cabinet, in conjunction with the Kentucky Water Transportation Advisory Board, will determine how the funds are actually allocated. The Bill also commits two years of funding to the Louisville-Southern Indiana Ohio River Bridges Project. This project is part of the effort to replace Ohio River bridges recently found not structurally sound, as noted by this prior post. In total, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet budget for the next two fiscal years is set at $2.38 to $2.400 billion dollars.

Closed Ohio River Bridge Snarls Traffic

The bridge carrying Interstate 64 over the Ohio River between Louisville, KY and Southern Indiana was closed for emergency structural repairs on Friday. This Report, from CBS news, indicates the closure may last up to six months.

To alleviate congestion, an excursion boat operator has announced shuttle service from Jeffersonville, IN to Louisville's Fourth St. Wharf for $1 each way. A report from WLKY.com, explains the service.

A riverboat carrying 300 passengers per trip maximum doesn't make much of a dent replacing a closed bridge that carried 80,000 vehicles per day, but hats off to the Spirit of Jefferson operators for quickly providing an outlet and assistance to commuters.