Grand Blvd. bridge to be replaced next year
by Ray Preston
KMOV.com
Posted on August 23, 2010 at 9:22 PM
Updated Monday, Aug 23 at 10:15 PM
See MORE renderings and plans here.
(KMOV) – The Grand Boulevard Bridge in midtown that runs between I-64/Highway 40 and Chouteau will be coming down in January.
It handles about 30,000 drivers a day, and connects St. Louis University’s main campus with its Health Sciences campus.
When the bridge closes, traffic will head west to Vandeventer and east to the Jefferson Avenue overpass or the Compton bridge, which will be reinforced to handle a greater traffic load.
The new grand bridge will have wider traffic lanes, bike lanes and planter boxes in the median. There will also be wider sidewalks and turn-out lanes for buses dropping off or picking up passengers from the Metrolink stop.
The $25 million project is expected to take about a year.
City officials will provide updates later this year on closure and alternative routes.
Additional Information: Grand Avenue Bridge, St. Louis, Missouri. Design, replacement and seismic upgrade of the bridge structure, improvements to the approaches to the bridge, addition of transit pullouts to accommodate transit bus service, improvement of existing light rail transit stations, and improvements of the pedestrian walkways. The existing bridge was constructed in 1959 and is significantly deteriorated. This bridge is a major north/south connection to the Grand Center, St. Louis University and many other points of interest. Two light rail transit stations are located on the bridge. The new structure will remove the safety risks inherent with travel on a deteriorating structure, provide a safer, more aesthetically pleasing transit service for those who use the bus and light rail systems, provide safer pedestrian facilities for students and others, and create a long-lasting improvement that will unify the Saint Louis University campuses.