A two-week lane closure on the current Mississippi River Bridge at Lansing began Monday (12.04).
The Iowa DOT says shutdown of the eastbound lane of the Iowa Highway 9 bridge over the Mississippi River from Lansing into Wisconsin is slated for December 4th to December 15th, weather permitting. Construction crews will be repairing the bridge rail and motorists will be guided across the bridge with flaggers while work is taking place.
Meanwhile, work has begun to prep that area for the construction of a brand new Black Hawk Bridge over the Mississippi. Groundbreaking was held a month ago, which, in essence, brought the project its halfway point.
That’s Pete Hjelmstad with the DOT’s Mason City District office, who says that while it is a collaborative effort, the Iowa DOT is heading up the project.
According to the DOT, federal funding will cover approximately 80% of the $140 million cost of the bridge. The bulk of the construction work for the new bridge will take place alongside the old bridge beginning in 2024.Â
The current bridge will remain in use until the new bridge is built. The existing structure has served the area since 1931 with a closure from 1945 to 1957 when the crossing was damaged by ice dams. Depreciation over time and changing vehicle size and traffic patterns now call for a new, wider, safer crossing.
You can learn more about this project on the Iowa and Wisconsin DOTs website. You can also
follow posts on the project’s Facebook page.Â
