AFTER YEARS OF DISCUSSION, CHESTER BRIDGE WORK SLATED

CHESTER, Ill. -- Motorists crossing the Mississippi River bridge between Perry County in Missouri and Chester, Ill., may have some slow going over a six- to seven-month period starting next week.

"Motorists will experience one-lane traffic and some vehicles will have width and height restrictions," said Dale Kinneman, senior construction inspector with the Missouri Department of Transportation office at Park Hills.

The on-again, off-again project to repaint and renovate the Chester bridge is on again. The $4.7 million renovation, which will include sandblasting and repainting of all steel and guardrails and deck repairs, will probably start Monday, said Kenneman.

Automated traffic signals will control the one-lane traffic, said Kinneman. All vehicles including farm machinery are limited to 10 feet in width and 14 feet in height.

Electronic sensors will immediately detect a vehicle upon arrival at the stoplight, providing efficient responses to motorists.

"Motorists could experience short delays during peak travel hours," said Kinneman. "We have notified a number of groups about the possible delays."

Every effort will be made to minimize any inconvenience and effectively accommodate motorists traveling in the area, said Kinneman.

About 6,200 vehicles a day crossed the bridge in 1996.

It could get especially busy at certain times of the day when business on both sides of the river have shift changes.

Global Construction Inc. of Holiday, Fla., is the primary contractor for the project. Work will be done under the supervision of the Missouri Department of Transportation's project office at Park Hills.

Ben Hur Construction of St. Louis will be making the deck repairs.

Contracts were awarded in December 1996.

The Chester bridge links Illinois Route 150 in Randolph County with Missouri Route 51 in Perry County.

Painting and rehabilitation work on the bridge has been discussed off and on since 1990, when the project was first delayed for lack of technology to dispose of old lead paint particles at a feasible cost.

Kinneman said the entire project could take from six to seven months.

"The contract calls for 100 working days," said Kinneman. "But the weather could be a factor as far as the actual amount of time it will take to complete the work. Right now we're looking at the end of October.

The Chester bridge has been in existence for more than 50 years. It was completed in August 1942, but remained open less than two years.

In July 1944, the main span of the bridge was destroyed by a tornado. The reconstructed bridge was reopened to traffic in September 1946.

It was operated by the city of Chester as a toll bridge until Jan. 1, 1989, when Missouri agreed to take over operation and maintenance of the span. The old toll house on the Illinois side of the river was removed in 1993.

In 1990, it was estimated that the total cost of the project would have been $5 million to $6 million because of lead disposal methods at that time.

Tests in 1990 revealed that the amount of lead particles in sand-blasted material on the bride exceeded acceptable U.S. Environmental Protection Administration and Missouri Department of Natural Resources levels. The EPA and DNR requires the collection and disposal of lead-based paint chips.

"Contractors will have to adhere to EPA and DNR guidelines on the 1997 project," said Kinneman. "They will have to collect the lead waste and recycle it."