LaTOUR, Mo. - The Route ZZ Bridge over Honey Creek near LaTour in Johnson County is scheduled to re-open with a ribbon-cutting ceremony beginning 10 a.m. Wednesday, May 22.

The bridge is among more than 800 to be fixed as part of MoDOT's Safe & Sound bridge repair program. Deck replacement for the Route ZZ bridge over Panther Creek began May 4 and will be completed before Memorial Day weekend despite rains that delayed the start of construction. Deck replacement using pre-fabricated panels helped speed up work.

Similar repairs were completed earlier this month for the Route OO bridge over Honey Creek northwest of Warrensburg.

Detours for these Safe & Sound projects can be found on the MoDOT Website by going to http://www.modot.org/kansascity/QuickStartList.htm and clicking on the Johnson County detours.

These two bridges are among 18 in Johnson County and more than 800 throughout Missouri to be repaired or replaced in the next five years through MoDOT's Safe & Sound bridge program. Closing these bridges lets the contractor complete the work quickly and get the bridges back open faster. It also keeps costs down, saving taxpayer money.

Full closures reduce cost by minimizing the need for additional right of way and for costly roadway work. Every bridge that's closed during construction allows MoDOT to work on another bridge in need of attention.

There are 10,249 bridges in the Missouri state highway system - 7th largest total nationwide. Approximately 1,100 of them are in poor/serious condition. The Safe & Sound Initiative will address most of these ailing bridges.