AREA ALREADY REAPS ECONOMIC BENEFITS FROM NEW BRIDGE

When the first Mississippi River bridge at Cape Girardeau opened, it provided a thoroughfare that would add 120,000 people and $60 million in purchasing power to the Cape Girardeau trading area.

That was in 1928.

Before the bridge, inter-state transportation was limited to two ferries -- Cape Ferry and Thebes Ferry -- which combined to transport about 30,000 cars a year across the big muddy.

Today, hundreds of vehicles make their way across the narrow, two-lane Mississippi river expanse each day.

"When the current bridge opened, it had to be one of the greatest economic impacts of the century for this area," said J. Ronald Fischer, Cape Girardeau City Manager recently. "Looking forward to the new four-lane river bridge that has been proposed, we see a continuation of that impact."

John Mehner agrees.

"With a new, four-lane expanse, those traffic figures will increase," said Mehner, president of the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce. "There are some people today who hate driving across the two-lane bridge, and use it only when necessary."

Said Fischer, "People throughout Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois depend heavily on the bridge.

"Try to imagine not having a bridge here. Now, imagine having a new multi-lane thoroughfare."

A new four-lane bridge facility between Cape Girardeau, Mo., and East Cape Girardeau, Ill., was proposed in 1991 by the Missouri Highway and Transportation Department.

The new bridge and highway project is expected to cost about $90 million -- $60 million for the new bridge and $30 million in road work, most of the latter going for a cross-town highway that will join Interstate 55. The $30 million also includes about $3.5 million worth of road work on the Illinois side.

Federal funding is expected to pay for 80 percent of the cost of the bridge and 75 percent of the cost of the road. When plans were first announced for the bridge, in 1992, highway officials projected the new bridge to be open to traffic by 1996.

Although all right-of-way property has now been acquired, the completion date has been extended to about the year 2000.

In announcing plans for the new bridge, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) stressed the safety factor that the new four-lane bridge would offer over the "deficient, obsolete span that now exists."

"Congestion on William Street will be reduced when the bridge is completed, as much through traffic is removed from that thoroughfare," said Larry Rohr, an engineer from the Missouri Department of Transportation's District Office at Sikeston. "The through traffic will travel more efficiently within the area. Reduction of delays will lessen expenditures of time, money and resources for the users of the new bridge and highway."

Economic benefits have not been completely addressed at this point, but the Cape Girardeau area is already reaping some economic benefits of an additional work force in the area.

The biggest impact, agree Mehner and Fischer, will be the creation of new construction jobs over the next few years.

"The new bridge will provide additional jobs here for a number of years," said Fischer. "And, this has already started. Ground work is already under way where the highway will join Interstate 55. Bids will be out soon for bridges across the Cape LaCroix Creek area. With a four-lane highway two new bridges will be constructed there."

Fischer also points to construction work in the demolition of residences and businesses which have been acquired along the bridge and highway right-of-way.

"It may be difficult to pinpoint an overall economic impact the new bridge will create," said Fischer. "When that first bridge opened in 1928, it had a terrific impact on the entire area. The new bridge will provide more of the same."

"The new bridge will be a very positive thing," said Mehner. "Cape Girardeau has grown into a real hub for the entire Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois area with its selection of retail outlets and medical services."

Shopping facilities include the downtown area, Plaza Shopping Center and West Park Mall, and the medical services of two hospitals -- Southeast Missouri Hospital and St. Francis Medical Center -- as well as Doctors' Park.

"The bridge will put new emphasis on east-west travel. And, with more than 240,000 people within a 40-mile radius of Cape Girardeau, that's a big factor," added Mehner, who said that the chamber has contacted other chambers of commerce throughout Southern Illinois and Southeast Missouri, urging them to forward resolutions to legislators to "make sure we get the bridge funding."

The new bridge may also play a big role in routes leading to the proposed downtown riverboat gaming facilities. With exits leading from the new bridge route in the Fountain Street area, traffic can be funneled to proposed new parking areas.

"This bridge is important to people on both sides of the river," said Mehner. "A lot of people from Illinois work in Cape Girardeau and vice versa."

"The new bridge also offers more safety seismically," said Fischer.

"It will be designed to be as safe as possible, including seismic safety."