SLOWLY BUT SURELY, WORK IS PROGRESSING ON THE BRIDGE, WITH COMPLETION SET FOR JUNE 2003

Work is progressing on the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge. With each new achievement, the bridge moves one step closer to reality.

The Illinois approach for the bridge is nearly complete. Ten piers and an embankment structure that is ready for paving have been completed. The only work yet to be done on the Illinois side is the five-lane approach.

Work should move to the middle pier within the next few weeks. This has been a troublesome pier.

The original contractor bowed out in 1997 when a bedrock problem was discovered underneath the pier. The bedrock problem has since been corrected.

For most people, the bridge construction has become just part of the scenery. Bridge construction began in 1996 and is scheduled to be completed in June 2003. Compare that to the 18 months it took to build the original Mississippi Bridge by hand.

This bridge will take at least seven years in the construction process. It is said that good things come to those who wait. That seems an appropriate adage when it comes to the Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge.