Prep work to replace the Hwy. 61-67 bridge over Joachim Creek in Herculaneum has begun, the Missouri Department of Transportation reported.
MoDOT awarded a $17.9 million contract to the KCI Construction Co. to replace the bridge built in 1933 with a new one and to raise the bridge to reduce the frequency and length of bridge closures due to flooding, agency officials reported. Other projects are included in the bid, they said
The prep work along Hwy. 61-67 between Pevely and Herculaneum started Jan. 7 and will continue through Jan. 30.
“Prep work is currently underway for earthwork to begin,” MoDOT spokeswoman Rachel Sudduth said. “This project will be coordinated with the I-55 Jefferson County Improvement Project to ensure no major impact will be on both north and south routes (of Hwy. 61-67) at the same time.”
She said the bridge construction part of the project has not yet been scheduled.
“At this time, there is no schedule to be able to say exactly when the new bridge will be built and opened,” Sudduth said.
The project covers the stretch of Hwy. 61-67 in the Herculaneum city limits to the eastern city limits of Pevely, with the bridge located between Herky Horine Road to the north and Scenic Drive to the south. The new bridge will be built west of the existing one, the MoDOT website states.
Motorists will use the existing bridge until the new bridge is completed. At that point, traffic will be shifted to the new bridge and the old one will be demolished, according to the website.
The $17.9 million project also includes slide repairs between Scenic Drive and Herky Horine Road and between North Outer Herky Horine Road and Joachim Road.
“Slide repairs are needed when a side (of a road) is falling away,” said Jordan Dalaviras, MoDOT area liaison for Franklin and Jefferson counties. “The slope is giving away. The slide repair stabilizes this.”
Dalaviras said another major component of the KCI project is the addition of a left-turn lane along a stretch of Hwy. 61-67 in Crystal City and Festus.
“They will construct a two-way, left-turn lane from Brandon Wallace Way to Sixth Street,” he said. “The schedule for that is unknown at this time. This will require one lane (of Hwy. 61-67) in each direction to be shut down during construction.”