Bridge work halts traffic, frustrates drivers over river

Some were cussing, others were sweating and at least one person took the opportunity to become an armchair highway planner as a long line of drivers sat stock-still in their automobiles Wednesday morning.

For as much as 30 long minutes, the drivers sat in the muggy heat as captives to an inspection and minor work on what already has become known as the "old Mississippi River bridge."

"I've been sitting here for 20 minutes," said Lee Borah Wednesday morning on the Illinois side on Highway 146. "This is crazy."

Borah, whose truck doesn't have air conditioning, said he couldn't understand why work on the Mississippi River bridge has to be done at peak traffic hours.

"Why can't they do this at night?" he said. "Or at least some other time when the traffic's not so heavy? This doesn't make any sense."

Stan Johnson, an area engineer with the Missouri Department of Transportation, said workers were doing the once-every-six-month inspection of the bridge, which requires them to close down one lane of the bridge in portions as they look for trouble spots.

They also took time to weld some spots near the trusses where portions of the joints had been eaten away.

Johnson said he didn't think it was feasible to do the work at night.

"There's no good way to get light under that bridge when it's dark out," Johnson said. "Even with a flashlight, it would be tough to see all you needed to see."

Johnson said a crew of MoDOT workers comes down from Jefferson City twice a year to do the work. He said drivers should expect more delays today as work continues until about noon.

As the men worked throughout the day, traffic was brought to a standstill. A big MoDOT truck blocked traffic as it worked in a lane. The truck, called a "snooper truck," has a three-pronged boom that allows workers to inspect underneath the 75-year-old span.

Cars on each side of the bridge had to be stopped as the bridge became one lane.

Deanna Hill of Olive Branch, Ill., was one of those drivers who was caught off guard by the work. The delay caused Hill to be late for a doctor's appointment.

"I wish I had realized they were doing it," she said. "I hate to be late, but I can't help it. I can't fly."

Vera Buster of East Cape Girardeau, Ill., was forced to wait 10 minutes. She said she understood the "old bridge" needed some work to help it last until the new $100 million Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge is finished later this year.

"I don't find it frustrating too much," she said. "I know that eventually it will get better. You have to get this old bridge worked on until the new one gets done."

smoyers@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137