The construction of a new Interstate 80 bridge over the Mississippi River will be the subject of a pair of upcoming meetings.
The Illinois Department of Transportation, in partnership with the Iowa Department of Transportation, will hold the bridge study meetings to:
- Present study information.
- Detail preferred alternative and potential impacts.
- Seek public feedback.
An online public hearing is set for 4 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 29. Click here to register for the meeting.
In addition, an in-person open house meeting will be from 1-3 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 30, at LeClaire City Hall, 325 Wisconsin St.
The new bridge, which is currently in the design phase, will replace what is formally known as the Fred Schwengel Memorial Bridge. The existing 57-year-old Mississippi River bridge will be demolished to clear the way for two new I-80 spans on the heavily truck-trafficked crossing that links LeClaire in Iowa and Rapids City in Illinois.Â
The upcoming online meeting will look at the bridge study. The study area includes about six miles from the 1-88/I-80 interchange in Illinois to 35th Street SW in LeClaire. Transportation officials will give updated information and preferred alternative impacts.Â
In addition to exhibits and maps, the hearing will include a video presentation and a question-and-answer session from officials with the Illinois and Iowa DOTs. The hearings also will include members of the project consultant team.
Looping video presentation
The in-person meeting will include a looping video presentation, project exhibit boards, the opportunity to speak with officials of the projects team and provide comments. No formal presentation will be given at this meeting.
Public comments received by Wednesday, Nov. 13, will become part of the public hearing record.
During an online public meeting to discuss plans for a new Interstate 80 Mississippi River Bridge last fall, the Illinois and Iowa DOTs jointly shot down the novel idea of repurposing the existing Fred Schwengel Memorial Bridge into a multi-use path and nature conservatory featuring a herd of bison.
Instead, the existing bridge will be demolished to clear the way for two new spans. The project is estimated to cost $288 million, and funds have already been budgeted by both states.
Parsons Corp., the project’s engineering consultant, studied for more than a year a list of four finalist alternatives for the new bridge’s pathway. Alternative 5 was unveiled as the preferred option during the meeting because of a combination of cost effectiveness and the lowest amount of environmental impacts, according to the three Parsons engineers on the meeting panel last year.
Construction of the new bridge could begin in 2027.
