The Chester Bridge was constructed in 1942 at a cost of $1.4 million. The bridge allowed vehicles to cross the Mississippi River between Perryville, Missouri, and Chester, Illinois without using a ferry. The Chester Bridge was re-constructed in 1944 after a severe storm destroyed the main span.
Until 1989, the Chester Bridge was a toll bridge.
This truss bridge has 14 spans for a total length of 2,827 feet. There are 2 main spans of 670 feet each. The bridge accommodates two lanes of traffic and is 22 feet wide with a vertical clearance of 19 feet 6 inches (permitted). Today, the bridge carries 7,000 vehicles daily, with approximately 25% being commercial motor vehicle traffic.
The Chester Bridge is one of 200 major bridges in Missouri. Major bridges are those over 1,000 feet long.
The estimated cost of the replacement project is approximately $243 million. The Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission approved an amendment to the FY2022-2026 Statewide Transportation Improvement Program to fund the Chester Bridge Replacement Project (J9P3857). The Illinois Department of Transportation committed $63 million toward the cost of a bridge replacement in its FY2022-2027 Rebuild Illinois Highway Improvement Program.
