Photo courtesy of MoDOT
There are currently four cranes on site. Once the towers are farther along, a crane will be added to each.
For 80 years, Missouri's Chester Bridge has allowed motorists to drive both east and west across the Mississippi River. Although it's still considered safe for travel, the structure has become less functional for modern vehicles and needs to be replaced.
"The bridge is in poor condition and requires a lot of maintenance," said Brian Okenfuss, Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) project director. "It's too narrow to allow for the passage of farm vehicles without police assistance to close the bridge."
Photo courtesy of MoDOT
Chester Bridge features two 11-ft. lanes and carries 6,500 vehicles per day across the bridge, with trucks accounting for 20 percent of that traffic. The bridge connects the cities of Chester, Ill., and Perryville, Mo., across the Mississippi River via Route 51. It was built in 1942 and was re-constructed in 1944, after a severe storm destroyed the main span.
The new $284 million Chester Bridge is being built upstream from the existing structure and will be twice as wide. Okenfuss said, so far, the work is going well.
"Each of the three towers is in different phases of construction. The tower on the Missouri side has been constructed up to the bearing elevation. The contractor will continue forming and pouring the towers above the road deck elevation in the coming weeks.
"A cofferdam is being constructed in the middle of the river for the center tower. Once complete, the construction of the footing can begin. Construction of the tower on the Illinois side of the river has just started. The contractor is currently installing eight drilled shafts."
As part of the assignment, the Missouri approach to the bridge is being raised about 3 ft. above the Bois Brule levee. This will prevent flood water from closing this approach.
Okenfuss noted that, overall, motorists won't be affected by the various tasks being performed.
"Traffic will only be minimally impacted during construction. There will be some lane shifts when we tie in the new alignment, but there will be no mainline closures."
According to Okenfuss, design-build was the right choice for this project, because it allowed contractors to plan the most efficient structure that resolved the most issues with the current bridge. The Ames Team, consisting of Ames Construction Inc. and Parsons Transportation Group, is overseeing the multi-million effort.
"They have a tremendous amount of experience building major river crossings, and they were able to provide the best value proposal," Okenfuss noted.
The biggest challenge for crews on the project is the unpredictable nature of the river elevation. Regarding the steps needed to construct the three-tower, cable-stayed bridge, said Okenfuss, "Obviously, the foundations come first, followed by the towers. Once the towers are in place, the deck will be built in sections that will be cantilevered from each of the towers until the deck meets in the middle. Finally, the new pavement will need to be tied into the existing roadway alignment."
Low water was an unexpected challenge for crews, but the river has returned to more normal flow conditions. The winter weather was fairly mild this year, allowing the contractor to continue working most days.
Photo courtesy of MoDOT
Equipment on site includes a mix of heavy machinery. There are currently four cranes on site. Once the towers are farther along, a crane will be added to each.
"The towers are constructed of concrete and rebar. There will be structural steel beam used to support the deck. The deck will be built using pre-cast deck panels that will have a thin concrete overlay placed on them."
Work on the new bridge, which is funded by both Illinois and Missouri, began in August 2023. Two months later, MoDOT and the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) hosted a groundbreaking ceremony, which took place on the Missouri side of the Mississippi River at the construction site.
The new structure, which will be called the Don Welge Memorial Bridge, should be finished by the end of 2026. The existing bridge will be demolished once the new structure is in place.
Okenfuss said while a good deal of work remains, it is extremely fulfilling to work on a project that will serve so many for years to come.
"It's an incredible experience for everyone involved to get an opportunity to work on this unique project." CEG
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