The Illinois DOT and Iowa DOT this week announced that the Iowa-bound I-74 Mississippi River Bridge is anticipated to open by the end of November.
According to the project website, crews are working quickly to prepare the new bridge for traffic. Ongoing tasks include painting the arch, finishing lighting installation and testing, striping the roadway, moving barrier walls, and installing new sign trusses over the roadway.
The I-74 Mississippi River Bridge project is part of a regional strategy for improving access across the Mississippi River in the Quad Cities. It includes the replacement of the I-74 twin bridges over the Mississippi River, interchange ramp reconfigurations, and interstate and local roadway improvements.
The pair of structures linking Moline, Illinois and Bettendorf, Iowa via I-74 have been carrying more than 75,000 vehicles per day, a figure that is expected to grow to 100,000 by the year 2035.
Bridge construction began in July 2017 and is anticipated to be completed in 2021. The new bridge will be more than twice as wide as the existing bridge, providing four lanes in each direction. A multiuse path on the bridge will connect to paths in Bettendorf and Moline. Between Middle Road in Bettendorf and Avenue of the Cities in Moline, I-74 will be expanded to three lanes in each direction with additional lanes at select locations.
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SOURCE: I-74 Mississippi River Bridge (Illinois DOT and Iowa DOT)
