Bridge Building Ballet

Imagine trying to build an overpass above one of central Missouri's busiest highways. You'd have to lift long, heavy steel beams across two lanes of highway and affix them to supports while imposing the least possible impact to traffic.

It takes a lot of choreography among people who can move quickly and easily amid seeming chaos. It's a lot like a large-ensemble ballet. And the professionals who set the first four beams for the U.S. 63/Route H overpass in Boone County are virtuoso.

In dance, timing is everything. In this case, everything was timed. The crews' arrival, the delivery of individual beams, the traffic interruptions. Everything had to happen in the correct order.

The beams arrived individually and each was connected to a crane

which hoisted them into place as a captive audience of travelers watched a few minutes of the performance.





Once the beams were aligned safely on the piers, traffic began to move below as carpenters and welders affixed the steel.











Meanwhile, another beam arrived on-site and the dance repeated until all were in place.

Soon, the completed overpass will be just another piece of the local landscape, but several groups of travelers will be able to say they saw this vital movement in the creation of a bridge. Thanks again, U.S. 63 motorists, for your patience!

Thank you, Missouri!

Missourians created jobs and saved lives when they approved Amendment 3 in November 2004. The constitutional change ended the diversion of some highway user fees to certain state agencies and redirected them to road and bridge projects.

We reached a milestone on Oct. 28 when we sold the last of the Amendment 3 bonds. This helped us leverage the additional funding and deliver 2,200 miles of smoother highways, 55 projects that were years down the road and 97 brand new projects that before were only a gleam in our eye. As a result, 83 percent of our major roads are in good condition today and traffic fatalities have decreased 24 percent since 2005.

Missouri voters deserve a big pat on the back and our thanks for investing in their highway system.

Glasgow Bridge Complete!

Today, Glasgow residents and those in surrounding communities will celebrate having their bridge again!
Only a year ago, the Glasgow Bridge in north central Missouri was one of the worst major river bridges in the state.

An innovative partial replacement solution has since improved the bridge, and a ceremony kicks off this afternoon where the residents celebrate!

The existing deck and steelwork was removed from the supporting piers, then replaced with a plate girder bridge to produce a new driving surface, extending the life of this important bridge for up to 50 years. Check out more photos and details!

New State Transportation Program Presents Uncertain Future

JEFFERSON CITY - Missouri's proposed five-year transportation improvement program includes good news - many new projects will be built next year, and bad news - ahead is little money for more than taking care of the existing system.

Significant highway and bridge improvements in the first year of the program can be attributed to funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the Safe & Sound Bridge Improvement Program. Funding for the new Mississippi River Bridge in St. Louis is also included.

However, by 2011, transportation funding drops by more than half and will continue to fall to only one-third of the 2010 amount in subsequent years. At this point, the Missouri Department of Transportation will struggle to keep existing highways in good shape and will have few dollars to build new roads, bridges or other transportation facilities.

"Stimulus money has helped delay falling off the funding cliff by about 12 to 18 months, but we will still fall off that cliff, and the consequences will be a transportation system that is getting worse instead of better," MoDOT Director Pete Rahn said. "Missourians must have a conversation about the future of transportation in our state."

The draft 2010-2014 Statewide Transportation Improvement Program lists all transportation projects planned by state and regional planning agencies for fiscal years 2010 through 2014 (July 1, 2009 - June 30, 2014). It totals $6.5 billion, with approximately $4.91 billion going to 658 highway and bridge projects, about $960 million to other transportation modes and approximately $660 million to local transportation programs.

"We use a transparent and extensive public involvement process to develop this program, and we have worked with our planning partners from communities around the state to identify and prioritize these new projects," Rahn said.

The proposed program is available for public review beginning May 6. Citizens interested in seeing the program or offering comments can contact MoDOT's customer service centers at 1-888 ASK MODOT (275-6636). The program is also available on MoDOT's Web site - http://www.modot.org/ - and at MoDOT's district offices around the state. The formal public comment period ends June 5.

Following the public review, the comments will be presented to the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission. The commission will review the comments and the final transportation program before considering it for approval July 8.

The draft 2010-2014 Statewide Transportation Improvement Program includes transportation improvements identified by metropolitan planning organizations in St. Louis, Kansas City, Springfield, Columbia, Jefferson City, Joplin and St. Joseph. The STIP projects located in these areas are subject to discussion and approval by the appropriate metropolitan planning organization.

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