BRIDGE PROJECT TO FINISH BEFORE HOLIDAY TRAFFIC

The widening of the Route K bridge over Interstate 55 should be completed by Dec. 8, the resident engineer says.

The engineer, Bob Wilson of the Missouri Highway and Transportation Department, said the deadline was moved back a week recently but that the project should be completed before the heavy holiday traffic comes through the area.

When construction began in February, the highway department had hoped construction would be completed in November. Wilson said crews ran into trouble when they couldn't find any bedrock to use as footings for the bridge pillars.

"They had to redesign the footings and that took some time," he said.

The bridge will be widened from four to seven lanes, Wilson said. Some of the lanes are designated as double turn lanes onto the interstate ramps, and two eastbound and westbound lanes will allow faster flow of through traffic.

Another aspect of the $3.8-million project is the three stoplight systems that will be put into place.

Each end of the bridge -- where the on-off ramps for the southbound and northbound lanes are located -- will have a light controlling the intersection. A stoplight also will be placed at the intersection of Route K and Siemers, just west of the bridge.

The traffic patterns and light timing will be evaluated for at least 21 days after they are operational, Wilson said. The timing will be adjusted as needed, he said.

In order to meet the Dec. 8 target date, Wilson said crews need temperatures above freezing and dry weather to pour some of the last sections of concrete. "It's just a gamble with the weather now," he said.

Although the lanes should be open by Dec. 8, Wilson said the primary contractor, St. Louis Bridge Co., might take a week or more to clean up the area.

He said at least a half dozen other contractors also worked on the project. They too will be doing "touch-up" work as needed.