County to replace old bridge

JACKSON, Mo. -- Cape Girardeau County will replace a 66-year-old, one-lane bridge north of Jackson with a two-lane concrete span costing $180,718.

Penzel Construction of Jackson, the low bidder on the project, expects to start construction next week on the bridge on County Road 450, said Scott Bechtold, the administrator of the county's highway department.

The current bridge, with a low load limit on it, won't handle some heavy vehicles. Some farm equipment is too large to cross the bridge, which is only 14 to 15 feet wide.

The new, 83-foot-long span over Cane Creek will be 24 feet wide and able to handle heavy vehicles and wide farm machinery, Bechtold said.

The contract calls for the bridge to be completed and the old torn down by mid-April. But Bechtold said that with good weather the project could be completed by the end of the year.

The federal government is paying 80 percent of the cost. The county is providing the 20 percent match. Part of the match will be in cash and the remainder will be in gravel work that will be done by county highway crews, Bechtold said, adding that there's limited funding for such projects.

"We can do about one of these every other year," he said.