Revision 564071459 of "Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge" on enwiki

{{Infobox bridge
|bridge_name= Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge
|image=New Mississippi R Bridge STL 20130119.jpg
|caption=Under construction, January, 2013
|official_name= Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge
|also_known_as=
|id=
|carries= 4 lanes of {{jct|country=USA|I|70}}, expandable to 6<ref name=stltodaynewbridge1>{{cite news|url=http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/commutingtraffic/story/966887B5A7576DF3862573FB0013930A?OpenDocument|last=Crouch|first=Elisa |title=States reach bridge deal|publisher=[[St. Louis Post-Dispatch]]|date=2008-02-26|accessdate=2008-02-28|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stltoday.com%2Fstltoday%2Fnews%2Fstories.nsf%2Fcommutingtraffic%2Fstory%2F966887B5A7576DF3862573FB0013930A%3FOpenDocument&date=2008-03-26|archivedate=2008-03-26}}</ref>
|crosses= [[Mississippi River]]
|locale= [[St. Louis, Missouri]] and [[St. Clair County, Illinois]]
|maint= [[Missouri Department of Transportation|MoDOT]] and [[Illinois Department of Transportation|IDOT]]
|designer= [[Massman Construction Co.]] and [[Alberici Constructors]]<ref name="lastpiece" />
|design= [[Cable-stayed bridge]]
|mainspan= {{convert|1500|ft|m|0}}
|length= {{convert|2803|ft|m|0}}
|width= {{convert|102|ft|m|0}} 
|clearance=
|below= {{convert|75|ft|m|0}}
|traffic=
|open= early 2014 (planned)
|closed=
|toll=
|map_cue=
|map_image=
|map_text=
|map_width=
|coordinates= {{coord|38|38|40|N|90|10|42|W|region:US_type:landmark}}
}}

The '''Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge''' is a [[bridge]] under construction across the [[Mississippi River]] between [[St. Clair County, Illinois]] and the city of [[St. Louis, Missouri]]. The structure will relieve traffic on nearby bridges &mdash; most importantly, the [[Poplar Street Bridge]], which carries [[I-55]], [[I-64]], [[I-70]], and [[U.S. Route 40|US 40]].

The [[Cable-stayed bridge|cable-stayed]] bridge will have a main span of 1,500 feet (457&nbsp;m).<ref>http://www.newriverbridge.org/pdf/NM_Proposed.pdf {{dead link|date=March 2011}}</ref>  <!-- At 222 feet (68 meters) wide, it will be the widest cable-stayed bridge in the world, (not anymore, with the decrease in width, more details to come I hope--> It will carry four mainline traffic lanes (half as many as originally planned), with room to add a lane in each direction.  It is designed so that a companion bridge could be built beside it.<ref name=stltodayillbridge>{{cite news|url=http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/story/608F0105E48550D9862573FC00166A0B?OpenDocument |title=Illinois is set to start bridge|last=Crouch|first=Elisa|publisher=[[St. Louis Post-Dispatch]]|date=2008-02-27|accessdate=2008-02-28 |archiveurl = http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stltoday.com%2Fstltoday%2Fnews%2Fstories.nsf%2Fstory%2F608F0105E48550D9862573FC00166A0B%3FOpenDocument&date=2008-03-26 |archivedate = 2008-03-26}}</ref>

When the bridge is complete, [[Interstate 70]] will be re-routed, diverging from the current [[Interstate 70 in Missouri|I-70]] at Cass Avenue and connecting with the existing [[Interstate 55 in Illinois|Interstate 55]]/[[Interstate 64 in Illinois|Interstate 64]]/[[Interstate 70 in Illinois|I-70]] in [[East St. Louis, Illinois|East St. Louis]].<ref name=stltodayillbridge/>  The remaining stretch of [[Interstate 70 in Missouri|I-70]] through downtown St. Louis will be redesignated [[Interstate 44 in Missouri|Interstate 44]].<ref>http://www.newriverbridge.org/documents/NMRBRe-Evaluation%203.pdf</ref> 

MOdot and IDOT say that if traffic continues to increase, sometime around 2017 a third lane will be added each way. If it continues to do so, a companion bridge will be built to the south.{{citation needed|date=July 2012}}

Ground was broken on April 19, 2010. In 2012, both the Missouri and Illinois approaches were under construction. Completion is scheduled for 2014.<ref name=stltodaynewbridge1 />

The last piece will be put into place in mid-July 2013.<ref name="lastpiece">{{cite web |url=http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/illinois/last-piece-of-new-mississippi-river-bridge-will-be-put/article_12dad72f-4a7c-59fe-9027-ab87912857d6.html |title=Last piece of new Mississippi River bridge will be put in place next month |publisher=''[[St. Louis Post-Dispatch]]'' |date=June 17, 2013}}</ref>
==Features==
[[File:NMRB construction 07252011 retouched.jpg|thumb|The bridge towers under construction, July 2011]]
The main span of the bridge will be {{convert|1500|ft|m}} in length, with a total span of 2,803 feet.<ref name="john">{{cite web | author=Weeks III, John A. | title=New Mississippi River Bridge | url=http://www.johnweeks.com/river_mississippi/pagesC/umissC16.html | publisher=John A. Weeks III | year=2009 | accessdate=2009-03-11}}</ref> It will be {{convert|86|ft|m}} wide. Cables will stretch from the bridge deck to the tops of two A-shaped towers, which will reach {{convert|435|ft|m}} above I-70. According to the Illinois and Missouri Departments of Transportation, the new bridge’s main span will consist of {{convert|1000|mi|km}} of {{convert|0.6|in|mm|adj=mid|-diameter}} stay-cable strand, enough for nearly two round trips from St. Louis to [[Chicago]]. Nearly 15,000 tons of [[structural steel]] will be used, along with 8,600 tons of [[reinforcing steel]]. Some 90,600 cubic yards of concrete will be used in the foundation, deck slab, and towers.<ref>{{cite web | author=Coates, Chris | title=New Mississippi River Bridge takes shape | url=http://edwardsvillejournal.stltoday.com1./articles/2008/09/11/news/sj2tn20080910-0910cvj-riverbridge.ii1.txt | publisher=Edwardsville Journal | date=September 10, 2008 | accessdate=2009-03-14}}</ref> Upon completion, the bridge will be the third longest cable-stayed bridge in the United States.<ref>{{cite web|last=Coburn|first=Davin|title=One World Trade Center... and 9 More Feats of Mega-Engineering  Read more: One World Trade Center... and 9 More Feats of Mega-Engineering|url=http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/engineering/architecture/one-world-trade-center-and-9-more-feats-of-mega-engineering?click=main_sr#slide-3|publisher=Popular Mechanics|accessdate=14 September 2012}}</ref>

==Funding==
===Budget===
The cost of the original design of the bridge and surrounding area was estimated at nearly $1.6 billion.<ref name="john"/> After both state governments decided that they could not bear the cost, a new design was submitted in 2007 with an estimated cost of $667 million.<ref name="bridge">{{cite web | title=New Mississippi River Bridge Project | url=http://www.newriverbridge.org/ | accessdate=2009-03-18}}</ref> Of the total, $264 million will go to move I-70 in Illinois, $57 million to move I-70 in Missouri, and $346 million to build the bridge.<ref name="bridge"/> The Illinois state government plans to spend $313 million;  Missouri, $115 million. A federal grant will cover the other $239 million.<ref name="bridge"/>

===Toll bridge proposal===
The funding of the bridge project was debated by the Illinois and Missouri governments.<ref name="web"/> After receiving the federal grant, Illinois pushed to start as soon as possible, but Missouri said it had more pressing highway projects to work on. Missouri transportation officials proposed to privatize the bridge, which would have allowed a private company to charge tolls in return for building, operating and maintaining it for up to 99 years. But Illinois officials and several St. Louis congressman demanded a toll-free crossing, and this was ratified by an agreement signed February 28, 2008, by Missouri governor [[Matt Blunt]] and Illinois governor [[Rod Blagojevich]].<ref name="web"/><ref name="web">{{cite web | author=Crouch, Elisa | title=States reach bridge deal | url=http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/commutingtraffic/story/966887B5A7576DF3862573FB0013930A?OpenDocument  | publisher=St. Louis Post Dispatch | date=February 26, 2008 | accessdate=2009-03-15 |archiveurl = http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.stltoday.com%2Fstltoday%2Fnews%2Fstories.nsf%2Fcommutingtraffic%2Fstory%2F966887B5A7576DF3862573FB0013930A%3FOpenDocument&date=2008-03-26 |archivedate = 2008-03-26}}</ref>

===Bids===
The cost of building the main span was initially estimated at $190 million. This proved low; a $229.5 million contract was awarded on December 30, 2009, to a joint venture of Massman Construction Co. of Kansas City, Traylor Bros. Inc. of Indiana and St. Louis-based Alberici Corp. (The team beat out the  $274.9 million bid by a joint venture of American Bridge Co. and Dragados USA.)<ref>{{cite news| url=http://stlouis.bizjournals.com/stlouis/stories/2009/12/28/daily29.html | first=Kelsey | last=Volkmann | title=Alberici, Massman, Traylor win $229M Mississippi River Bridge project | date=2009-12-30}}</ref>
MoDOT agreed to cover any cost overruns. This has prompted speculation{{By whom|date=January 2013}} that the project might be scaled back.

==Design and construction==
Subsurface exploration by [[geotechnical engineering]] company [[Ralph_Modjeski|Modjeski]] and Masters showed thick deposits of low-density sand below the water table.<ref name="hans">{{cite web | title=Proposed Mississippi River Bridge | url=http://www.hansonengineers.com/insight/0502/story1.html | year=2004 | accessdate=2009-03-12}} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref> Such loose sand might [[liquefaction|liquify]] during an [[earthquake]]. Several ways to reduce the risk were considered, including in-situ densification of the sands,<ref name="hans"/> but ultimately the foundations were changed to feature {{convert|12|ft|m|adj=mid|-diameter}}, {{convert|120|ft|m|adj=mid|-long}} drilled piers founded in the [[limestone]] bedrock to support the bridge superstructure. The bedrock is {{convert|120|ft|m}} below the surface on the Illinois side and between 30 and {{convert|60|ft|m}} on the Missouri side.

===Land sale===
In 2003, land intended to be used for the bridge was sold by the City of St. Louis Land Reutilization Authority to a private developer for $2. In early 2008, MoDOT warned the developer not to build on it, but the developer completed the construction of 400 storage units.  MoDOT offered a $1.7 million buyout, which the developer turned down.  The property was condemned, and a circuit court ordered MoDOT to give the developer $2.3 million in compensation.  MoDOT is contesting this amount.<ref name="MoDOT spending $2.3 million to get bridge right-of-way that city sold for $2">{{cite news |url=http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/stlouiscitycounty/story/F0D3CAF52BAC761886257652001B7E8A?OpenDocument | title=MoDOT spending $2.3 million to get bridge right-of-way that city sold for $2| publisher= Stltoday.com }}{{dead link|date=June 2013}}</ref>

===Minority labor controversies===
In August 2011, community leaders in East St. Louis lodged complaints with the Illinois Department of Transportation that the bridge labor force included too few minority workers. Federal law requires that the labor force on any public works project that is fully or partially funded by federal dollars must be composed of at least 14.6% members of a recognized minority group. The project meets these requirements, according to contractor records; the activists argued that the labor force was not representative of those living in the region.<ref>http://www.fox2now.com/news/ktvi-20110815,0,4086543.story{{dead link|date=June 2013}}</ref><ref> http://www.kplr11.com/news/ktvi-protester-mississippi-river-bridge-080511,0,3329944.story {{dead link|date=June 2013}}</ref>  A protest and work stoppage on the Illinois portion of the bridge was threatened but work on the bridge continued.

Riley Illinois, a firm that is supplying concrete for the project, was de-listed as a minority-owned business when Illinois officials discovered that only one of the four owners of the firm was a minority. Though the company is still contracted to provide concrete for the bridge, it no longer counts as a minority-owned firm.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://fox2now.com/2012/05/28/fox-files-mississippi-river-bridge-contractor-controversy/ |title=FOX Files: Mississippi River Bridge Contractor Controversy |publisher=FOX2now.com |date=2012-05-28 |accessdate=2013-06-18}}</ref>

===Construction accident===
At 10:30 a.m. on April 5, 2012, carpenter Andy Gammon plunged to his death when a barge-mounted lift toppled. A rescue effort was unsuccessful.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ksdk.com/news/article/312777/3/Recovery-effort-underway-for-man-at-Mississippi-River-Bridge-project |title=Andy Gammon falls off new Mississippi River bridge project |publisher=ksdk.com |date=2012-03-29 |accessdate=2013-06-18}}</ref>
==Naming==
In August 2004, William Perkins and Russ Reike, members of the [[Veterans of Foreign Wars]], gave Rep. [[Jerry Costello]] (D-IL) petitions with over 4,000 signatures supporting the naming of the new bridge "Veteran's Memorial Bridge". There have already been two bridges in the area with that name—The current [[Martin Luther King Bridge (St. Louis)|Martin Luther King Bridge]] was originally called "Veteran's Memorial Bridge" before it was renamed in 1968.,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.johnweeks.com/river_mississippi/pagesC/umissC05.html |title=Martin Luther King Bridge, MLK Bridge Mississippi River Crossing At Saint Louis|publisher=Johnweeks.com |date= |accessdate=2012-07-22}}</ref> and there is already an existing [[Veterans Memorial Bridge (St. Louis)|bridge with that name]] crossing over the nearby [[Missouri River]]. The effort to give the new bridge this name as well was supported by Rep. [[John Shimkus]] (R-IL) and Illinois Governor [[Pat Quinn (politician)|Pat Quinn]].

On August 28, 2005, the Missouri State Legislature voted to name the bridge after [[Ronald Reagan]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.johnweeks.com/river_mississippi/pagesC/umissC16.html |title=Ronald Wilson Reagan Memorial Bridge, Saint Louis, MO |publisher=Johnweeks.com |date= |accessdate=2011-03-20}}</ref>

In March 2011, the Missouri House of Representatives approved a proposal to change the name to "[[Jerry F. Costello]]-[[William Lacy 'Bill' Clay Sr.]] Veterans Memorial Bridge."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stltoday.com/news/traffic/along-for-the-ride/article_5b86743a-797b-5fa3-93d1-edc26e5f94af.html |title=New Mississippi bridge may be better left nameless |publisher=Stltoday.com |accessdate=2011-03-20}}</ref> One month later, the Missouri Senate Transportation Committee rejected the change.

Some groups pushed for "Women Veterans Memorial Bridge."<ref>{{cite web|first=REBECCA |last=BERG |url=http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_b7d90e0e-a3c5-5331-8be3-6bc72addaad9.html |title=Big tiff develops over bridge name |publisher=Stltoday.com |date=2011-04-14 |accessdate=2013-06-18}}</ref>

On January 22, 2013, Sen. [[Eric Schmitt]] (R-[[Glendale, Missouri]]) and another Missouri state senator introduced a bill to name the bridge after [[Stan Musial]], the former St. Louis Cardinals baseball player who had recently died. The measure required the approval of both houses of both the Illinois and Missouri legislatures.<ref>{{cite web
 | url = http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/new-mississippi-river-bridge-could-be-named-for-musial/article_9005a970-8921-531e-b3ac-a9b4d9e0f83c.html
 | title = New Mississippi River bridge could be named for Musial
 | date = 2013-01-23
 | accessdate = 2013-01-23
 | publisher = St. Louis Post Dispatch
 }}</ref> The measure received the first of two necessary approvals from the [[Missouri Senate]] on February 20, 2013. An amendment to the Musial bill, sponsored by Sen. [[Gary Romine]] ([[Farmington, Missouri]]), would name a portion of the highway for Gammon, the bridge worker who died.<ref>{{cite web|last=Crisp |first=Elizabeth |url=http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/elizabeth-crisp/missouri-senate-gives-first-ok-to-naming-new-mississippi-river/article_fcc0bc80-7f07-5cc3-b134-96762617932f.html |title=Missouri Senate gives first OK to naming new Mississippi River bridge for Musial  |publisher=Stltoday.com |date=2013-02-20 |accessdate=2013-06-18}}</ref>

==See also==
* {{portal-inline|Bridges}}
* {{portal-inline|Missouri}}
* {{portal-inline|Illinois}}
* [[List of crossings of the Upper Mississippi River]]

==References==
{{Citations broken|date=June 2013}}
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

==External links==
*{{official website|http://www.newriverbridge.org/}}
* {{Structurae|id=s0004873|title=New Mississippi River Bridge at Saint Louis}}
*[http://oxblue.com/pro/open/modot/mrbp/ Construction Web Camera] at oxblue.com
*[http://DrPanorama.com/PanoPage.aspx?TourID=707 360 Degree Panorama] at DrPanorama.com

{{Structures in Greater St. Louis}}
{{Crossings navbox
|structure       = Crossings
|place           = [[Mississippi River]]
|bridge          = New Mississippi River Bridge (under construction)
|bridge signs    = '''Future''' [[Image:I-70.svg|20px]]
|upstream        = [[McKinley Bridge]]
|upstream signs  = [[Image:US 66 (historic).svg|20px]]
|downstream      = [[Martin Luther King Bridge (St. Louis)|Martin Luther King Bridge]]
|downstream signs = [[Image:MO-799.svg|25px]]
}}
{{Developments in St. Louis}}

[[Category:Bridges in St. Louis, Missouri]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in St. Clair County, Illinois]]
[[Category:Road bridges in Illinois]]
[[Category:Road bridges in Missouri]]
[[Category:Towers in Illinois]]
[[Category:Towers in Missouri]]
[[Category:Cable-stayed bridges in the United States]]
[[Category:Bridges on the Interstate Highway System]]
[[Category:Interstate 70]]
[[Category:Bridges under construction]]