The I-64 Flip

This weekend, crews flipped the construction closure on Interstate 64 through the heart of St. Louis city. Crews closed the eastern five miles of the interstate this weekend to construct the new I-64, while opening the western half of the project two weeks ahead of schedule.

To manage traffic during this flip, as drivers through the city are learning which routes are the best for their daily commutes, the Missouri Department of Transportation in conjunction with traffic experts from St. Louis County and St. Louis City, have been operating a command center to watch for trouble spots during the early part of the eastern closure.

Traffic flow on the first day was impacted a bit by icy weather that rolled through St. Louis just before the Monday morning rush period. Although traffic during the day was relatively light due to the weather, it moved along smoothly.

The start of designing something big

Engineers have been hard at work designing the Mississippi River Bridge, the $640 million river crossing which will begin construction in 2010. The design team, which is co-located in Laclede's Landing near the Mississippi River, has prequalified four contractor teams to bid on the cable stay portion of the bridge.

This prequalification means these contractors teams have the experience, leadership and capability available (within the team) to complete the complex work required to construct the new river bridge. It also means that these contractor teams will be able to work with the MRB team to develop confidential and individualized proposals using the latest advances in construction technology. This innovative method to reduce costs will allow Missouri and Illinois to get the best possible bid late next year as the two states prepare for the construction of this greatly-needed project.