JEFFERSON CITY – The Missouri Department of Transportation wants motorists traveling Route 63 between Columbia and Jefferson City to be aware that their travel will be impacted this summer when the southbound Route 63 bridge over the Katy Trail gets a new deck.
The project, which will bid in April, will require both lanes of southbound Route 63 over the Katy Trail to be closed. Southbound traffic will be diverted to northbound Route 63, which will carry one lane of traffic in each direction.
“This stretch of Route 63 carries a lot of commuters between Columbia and Jefferson City,” said MoDOT Project Manager Mike Dusenberg. “The closure will likely cause delays during peak travel times, such as morning and evening rush periods and Friday and Sunday afternoons.”
The full closure of southbound Route 63 will not occur until after Memorial Day weekend, Dusenberg said. The project is scheduled to wrap up in the fall.
Some occasional overhead work on the bridge will also require full and partial closures of the Katy Trail to bicycle and pedestrian traffic. The intent is to keep these closures to weekdays and avoid closing the trail on weekends, Dusenberg said. MoDOT will work with the Department of Natural Resources, the trail owner, to notify the public in advance about any Katy trail closings.
In addition to the new deck, which will make the bridge a little wider, the project will bring the guardrail and bridge barrier on the southbound structure up to current standards.
“Re-decking the southbound bridge is the most cost-effective way to keep it in good condition,” Dusenberg said. “This work should allow us to get an additional 20-30 years of service out of the bridge.”