ST. LOUIS – Inspection crews are near completion on the more in-depth evaluation on the I-255 bridges across the Mississippi River. It is still uncertain when MoDOT will be able to verify the bridge is safe and reopen it.
A part of that determination will be completed late tomorrow afternoon, after MoDOT receives the result of a very extensive lab test on the portion of the bridge where cracks were discovered.
The department is awarding an emergency contract to get additional resources on the bridge to complete needed repairs, and has already started making repairs. Personnel and equipment from both MoDOT and IDOT as well as two private companies are working on the bridge.
“We don’t take making the decision to close the bridge lightly, but safety must be our primary concern in cases such as this. We are doing everything we can to expedite this process, and are working around the clock to reopen the bridge as soon as possible after we can definitely verify the bridge is safe,” said Tom Blair, P.E., district engineer for MoDOT St. Louis.
The bridge closed on Sunday, after a routine inspection found a six-foot crack under the weld of a critical portion of the bridge’s structure. Further inspections have found similar cracks in other similar locations of the westbound bridge, but none of them are as severe as the initial crack found on Sunday.
Once MoDOT receives the results from the lab report tomorrow, MoDOT will be able to determine if the department will be able to reopen the bridge, or will have to look at constructing a cross-over to move westbound I-255 to the eastbound bridge.
MoDOT continues to coordinate with various partners, including the Illinois Department of Transportation, emergency responders, and local construction teams to mitigate the situation, determine a repair and get the bridge open to traffic as soon as safely possible.
Several crashes around the region resulted in extensive backups during Wednesday morning’s rush period. During the closure, commuters should consider getting onto the interstate system as soon as possible and using all Mississippi River crossings between Illinois and Missouri, or, if possible, using MetroLink, shifting their commute times, or telecommuting. IDOT has also increased staff on hand to update signs and adjust signal timing.