Safe & Sound Bridges Set for Replacement in 2011                

Statewide Safe & Sound Web Site

• Statewide Safe & Sound Interactive Bridge Map

Latest Safe & Sound News:

• Route 14 at Cowskin Creek west of Ava scheduled to begin June 20
• Greene County Route YY at Pearson Creek east of Springfield Begins June 15
• Webster County Route KK at Panther Creek between Rogersville and Marshfield Begins May 31
• Route 14 at Fox Creek near Gentryville Begins June 6
• Route 123 at Stockton Lake Bridge Rehabilitation Begins April 18

Safe & Sound Update:

• Six bridges completed so far in 2011:
  • Douglas County Route B at Bryant Creek replaced -- April 2011
  • Route 248 at Dry Creek west of Galena replaced -- April 2011
  • Wright County Route F at Woods Fork north of Mansfield replaced -- May 2011
  • Route 76 at Spring Branch west of Bradleyville replaced -- May 2011
  • Route 76 at Red Bank Creek near Vanzant replaced -- May 2011
  • Route 125 at Brush Creek south of Bradleyville replaced -- May 2011

• Three bridges completed in 2010:
  • Greene County Route UU bridge at Clear Creek rehabilitated -- May 2010
  • Laclede County Route A/C bridge over I-44 at Phillipsburg rehabilitated -- 2010
  • Route 125 at James River east of Springfield replaced -- October 2010

• Two bridges completed in 2009:
  • Polk County Route AA bridge at Hominy Creek rehabilitated -- April 2009
  • Route 32 bridge at the Niangua River east of Buffalo rehabilitated -- July 2009

• Twenty-nine bridges scheduled for replacement/rehabilitation in 2011.  See link above.

Program Facts

• Missouri has 10,276 bridges on the Missouri state highway system – 7th largest total nationwide. About 1,100 of those bridges are in poor/serious condition, mostly because of wear and tear on the deck, girders and/or columns. The 802 bridges in the worst condition will be repaired or replaced under Safe & Sound by October 31, 2014.

• 248 of the bridges up for rehabilitation in the program are packaged in small groups based on location, size or type and put out for bids in what is called a Modified Design-Bid-Build process. This process will help accelerate construction schedules and enable at least 100 bridges to be under contract early in 2009.

• 554 bridges to be replaced are packaged in a Design-Build contract. Construction on some of these bridges began in 2009.

• MoDOT will dedicate about one-third of its annual existing federal bridge replacement funds to finance the program without a tax increase or additional funding. Payments are expected to be about $50 million a year.

• Bridges were selected for the Safe and Sound program based on their condition and role in supporting Missouri’s businesses, farms and families and because funding for improvements had not already been allocated through traditional programs.

Road Closures

• Drivers should expect that most of the bridges on the Safe & Sound program will be closed to speed construction and to save money. Closing the bridge and repairing or replacing it where it sits today greatly reduces the need to buy additional right of way, to relocate utilities and to build expensive new roadway connections. Avoiding these costs means that MoDOT can improve more bridges across the state.

• Contractors have a specific amount of time to begin and complete work on each bridge. Before work begins, MoDOT will post signs at each bridge in the program, alerting drivers to anticipate construction activity. Information about construction will be provided to local news media and through other means to help notify the community when work will begin.

• Where applicable, detours on state roads will be marked.

• MoDOT is committed to working with citizens to schedule work during times with minimal impacts to communities, but the inconvenience of road closures may not be avoidable. Just as it is inconvenient to slow down for roadwork, it is inconvenient to take a detour for a bridge replacement, and we understand that. This program would not be affordable without road closures.

• We ask for the understanding and cooperation of the traveling public as we complete these projects as quickly as possible.

For more information, contact our Springfield District Office at 417-895-7600 or 1-888-ASK-MoDOT (275-6636).

Last updated: June 23, 2011.