Those planning to cross the Mississippi Bridge following President Clinton's visit this afternoon will have to wait.

The bridge will close for a short while before President Clinton and his party leave Capaha Park following his speech, said police spokesman Sgt. Carl Kinnison.

The bridge will remain closed until the motorcade crosses the bridge and gets on its way to the president's next speaking engagement in Cairo, Ill., Kinnison said.

The wait shouldn't be long, however. Authorities don't expect the bridge to stay closed for any extended period of time.

The streets along President Clinton's motorcade route coming into the city also will close for periods of time while the president is in Cape Girardeau, Kinnison said.

Police will close the streets leading from the airport to Capaha Park shortly before Clinton's arrival and keep them closed while he is traveling to the park. The streets will reopen when Clinton arrives at the park.

The streets leading from Capaha Park to the bridge will be closed shortly before Clinton leaves Capaha Park and will remain closed until he crosses the Mississippi River Bridge to Illinois.

Kinnison said it may be necessary to close these streets for longer periods of time. Interstate 55 should not be closed longer than 15 minutes, but other streets may be closed for as long as two hours.

The exact times these thoroughfares will close or how long they will remain that way is impossible to determine, Kinnison said.

The president has a tentative agenda, but could be delayed in Chicago, the airport or in the motorcade. "There's just no way to know," Kinnison said.