Champ Clark Bridge, Pike County, Missouri and Pike County, IllinoisThe Illinois and Missouri Departments of Transportation are seeking public comments on the environmental assessment for a location for the new Champ Clark Bridge to span the Mississippi River in Louisiana, Missouri.
The current Clamp Clark Bridge, also know as the US 54 bridge, is a five-span truss design built in 1928 and is 2,238 feet long. It is closed for a few days each year for a full-depth inspection and is considered functionally obsolete.
An in-person presentation on the environmental assessment will be made in person June 9 in Louisiana, Missouri, but all details, including how to comment, are available at www.champclarkbridge.com.
“Funding for a new bridge has been included in Missouri’s draft five-year transportation program,” says Brian Haeffner, Missouri DOT area engineer. The draft program will be presented to the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission at its meeting on July 7 in St. Louis.
“We are accepting comments about projects in the program until June 10,” Haeffner adds. Comments can be submitted online at stipcomments@modot.mo.gov.
“Millions of dollars has been spent to keep the bridge safely open for its users, and we are pleased we are closer to making a new bridge a reality,” Haeffner says.
The Champ Clark Bridge is one several bridges the Missouri DOT is making available for donation to a state, local or private entity. Federal requirements mandate any historic bridge proposed for demolition by a state be made available. More details on the agency’s “free bridge” program are available here.
