WHITEWATER BRIDGE WORK IS UNDER WAY

JACKSON - Construction of a county bridge over the Diversion Channel could be finished by the first of December, Associate Commissioner Leonard Sander said Tuesday.

"We are very much in hopes we will have it completed by the first of December, but a lot of that will depend on weather," said Sander.

The 200-foot-long bridge on County Road 253 about three miles west of Whitewater is the largest bridge ever replaced by the county.

The existing 60-year-old steel truss bridge has been in need of replacement for several years.

Robinson Construction Co. of Poplar Bluff is the contractor. The bridge will cost almost $400,000. Seventy percent of the costs will be paid by the Missouri Highway and Transportation Department through federal off-systems road money it administers.

Work started Aug. 24 and the company has 110 working days to complete the job. As part of the project, the contractor will also remove the old bridge after the new one is completed. The new bridge is being built next to the existing one.

Sander said the route is heavily traveled and it is important that traffic not be tied up. "There is a lot of traffic over this bridge and as far as we know there will be no disruption," said Sander.

"They are real happy with the start they have gotten and things seem to be moving along pretty smooth," he said.

The cost of the bridge is higher than normal because of its unique design, explained Sander.

Little River Drainage District, which has jurisdiction over the Diversion Channel, will not allow bridge piers to be in the water because they could obstruct channel flow.

A bridge completed three weeks ago with federal off-systems road money as partial funding was one over Caney Fork on a road between Millersville and Oak Ridge.

With completion of the Caney Fork and Whitewater bridges, Sander said the county has no other projects pending with federal off-systems money. However, he said that once additional money becomes available the County Commission likely will provide matching funds for all federal money it can get to build bridges.

The commission is optimistic that the new federal highway bill will generate more money for county road projects.