When is a good week to close a major bridge?

The Missouri Department of Transportation is planning to close the westbound Daniel Boone Bridge this weekend (on I-64/Route 40) between St. Louis and St. Charles counties for its annual inspection. At the same time, crews will complete an additional inspection based on Federal Highway Administration findings from the river bridge in Minneapolis that collapsed last year. Although it is inconvenient, to say the least, to close a major river bridge, this is work that has to be done. It had to be done on a weekend (to minimize the impact on traffic), and it had to be done at a time when there wasn't a major event in St. Charles County or further west which might draw traffic along the route.

To pick a date, the department considered all upcoming weekends. Since Mizzou has a bye week this week and the winery tours aren't yet in full swing, this week was as good as we could pick to complete this inspection. There are sure to be other events which will be impacted -- however, the posted detour will get drivers to their destination. If you know the area, you can also take other routes to get to St. Charles County and beyond.

For more details on the closure, click here.