ST. LOUIS HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION

HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION REPORT
For more information on road construction call 1-888-ASK MODOT.

"If it's happening in St. Louis, it's on Saint Louis Front Page."

Power & Light District

Sprint Center

KC Hotel Guide

How To Reach Us:
St. Louis Front Page
P.O. Box 1354
St. Louis, MO 63188

Voice: 314-771-0200
Fax: 314-771-0300

To submit news, contact:
editor@slfp.com

To advertise, contact:
advertising@slfp.com

Rendering of New Mississippi River Bridge

Rendering of the New Mississippi River Bridge which will carry Interstate 70 traffic from Illinois to Missouri connecting I-70 at the I-55/I-64/I-70 interchange on the Illinois side to I-70 near Cass Avenue on the Missouri side. Courtesy MoDOT, IDOT

Missouri, Illinois Reach Agreement on New $640 Million Mississippi River Bridge
ST. LOUIS, MO, February 28, 2008 - Missouri Governor Matt Blunt and Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, along with the Missouri Department of Transportation, Illinois Department of Transportation and dignitaries and officials from both states, announce that an agreement has been reached on the New I-70 Mississippi River Bridge.

The bridge will have a significant impact on transportation in the St. Louis region connecting Missouri and Illinois, as well as enhance travel and economic opportunities for the metropolitan area.

The agreement will build the New Mississippi River Bridge in the location originally approved by Federal Highway Administration in 2001, which is one mile north of the Martin Luther King Bridge in north St. Louis.

The new bridge will have four lanes, two lanes in each direction, with room to expand to six lanes. The New Mississippi River Bridge will carry Interstate 70 traffic from Illinois to Missouri connecting I-70 at the I-55/I-64/I-70 interchange on the Illinois side to I-70 near Cass Avenue on the Missouri side. The new bridge will not be a toll bridge. Design for the project will begin immediately. Construction could begin as early as 2010 and last four to six years.

The New Mississippi River Bridge is expected to reduce severe traffic congestion and vehicle crashes on the Poplar Street Bridge (PSB). Currently, PSB carries combined traffic for Interstates 55, 64 and 70. In 2004, traffic counts on the PSB average between 115,000 and 125,000 vehicles daily. By 2030, projections are that the PSB would carry more than 150,000 vehicles daily if no additional major river bridge crossing is constructed.

The reduction of vehicles from the Poplar Street Bridge to the new I-70 Mississippi River Bridge is also expected to reduce travel delays, enhance safety and sustain economic growth and development in St. Louis and Illinois.

The total project cost for the New Mississippi River Bridge is $640 million:

Bridge is $306 million (MO=$93 million and IL = $213 million)
Missouri roadway connection = $70 million
Illinois roadway connection = $264 million

Public meetings will be held this year in Illinois and Missouri to provide details on the New Mississippi River Bridge.

Archived News:

MoDOT To Launch Origin/Destination Web Tool

Chouteau Bridge to Reopen

Gateway Constructors Selected for $535 Million Project to Reconstruct I-64

I-64 Approved as MoDOT's First Design-Build Project

Largest-Ever Missouri Road-Building Program Approved

The Saint Louis Front Page is owned and maintained by the Moore Design Group for the sole purpose of disseminating news and information about the Metropolitan Saint Louis area. Text or graphics may not be copied, rewritten or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission. For more information, contact editor@slfp.com All rights reserved world wide © 1996 - 2008 Moore Design Group.