MODOT STARTS NEWSLETTER TO UPDATE BRIDGE PROCESS

Missouri Department of Transportation officials hope to bridge an information gap in a new newsletter devoted to the construction of the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge at Cape Girardeau.

The first issue of the quarterly newsletter, The Beacon, was mailed this month to about 1,700 residents in the region, including Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce members, mayors, state lawmakers, county commissioners and the news media.

MoDOT area engineer Stan Johnson said the agency is working to keep the public informed on the $100 million project.

"We are just trying to get the word out to let people know what we are doing with the tax dollars," he said. The federal government is paying 80 percent of the cost, with Missouri and Illinois sharing the remainder.

MoDOT also intends to provide updates on projects on U.S. 67 and Highway 412 in Southeast Missouri through separate newsletters.

Angie Wilson, spokeswoman for the MoDOT office in Sikeston, said construction of the Mississippi River bridge has drawn a lot of public attention. "People are really interested in what's going on," she said.

Wilson said MoDOT's district office hopes to launch a Web site this fall that will include a page devoted to the bridge project.

MoDOT is exploring the possibility of installing a camera at the bridge. The camera could provide a continuous stream of pictures recording the progress of the project. The construction photos could be downloaded onto the Web site for anyone on the Internet to see, Wilson said.

Even if that doesn't occur, MoDOT is looking at providing a Web photo gallery on the bridge construction.

Wilson said it is important for MoDOT to keep the whole area informed of the progress on the bridge. "It is a major project for Cape Girardeau, but it affects all of Southeast Missouri," she said.

Traylor Brothers Inc. of Evansville, Ind., is the contractor for the main span of the bridge. The Missouri Highway and Transportation Commission awarded the $53.7 million contract in March.

Larry Owens, project manager for Traylor Brothers, said construction crews will be working 10-hour days during the week and on some weekends.

Johnson said the contractor has about 40 people currently working on the bridge. "They have a lot of work done on their coffer dam," he said.

The dam in the middle of the river is essential for construction of a pier there.

Construction is under way on a dock on the Illinois shore that will be used in building the river pier. "There is all kinds of equipment down there," he said.

Johnson said concrete will be trucked from Missouri to Illinois and then loaded into hoppers and taken by barge to the middle of the river for construction of the pier. The concrete will be transported from the Illinois side to avoid clogging the navigation channel, Johnson said.

The bridge is expected to be completed by 2003.

BILL EMERSON MEMORIAL BRIDGE FACTS

* Design: The structure will be supported by 15 piers, including land abutments in Missouri and Illinois.

* Width: The bridge will be about 100 feet wide, five times as wide as the existing span. It will have four lanes and roadway shoulders.

* Length: The span will be nearly 4,000 feet long, almost equaling the length of 13 football fields. The cable-stay portion will extend 2,086 feet. The Illinois approach span cover is 1,870 feet long.

* Height: The driving lanes of the bridge deck will be 60 feet above the river. The support cables will be attached to towers above the deck that rise to 300 feet above the water.

* Lighting: The span will include 140 lights.