Preliminary work starts on MO-79 bridge

HANNIBAL (WGEM) - If your morning commute takes you through Hannibal, you might see some activity down by the bridge on Missouri Route 79 as preparations kick off Wednesday on the multi-million dollar project to replace the bridge.

MoDOT officials said workers will clear brush and trees. Assistant district engineer Kevin James said they want to also reinforce the concrete piers and some foundation work. He said it’s all to get the area ready before they replace the bridge over the spring. He said the bridge has outworn it’s usefulness and they’ve already had to deal with a lot of repairs.

“We’ve had some holes that have occurred in the deck that our maintenance crews have come and replaced throughout this past construction season but those are not long term repairs we know the term solution is a replacement of the structure,” James said.

He said they plan to start replacement in the spring and the project will take six months. He said during those six months, the bridge will close. He said they’ll detour traffic to Highway 61 through New London, and back around through Route 79. Hannibal resident Mary Gray said she’s glad the bridge is getting replaced, but has concern about what it’ll mean for the downtown area.

“I think it’s going to probably cause a little bit of problem, especially people who work down that road, there’s a lot of semis that haul stuff in and out of there, actually I know quite a few that haul stuff in and out of there all day long and that’s what they do and they are going to have to change their route so it’s going to make it really hard for a lot of people,” Gray said.

She said she is glad to see work done on the bridge. She said it looked like it’s falling apart and full of potholes.

James said when they decide a date for construction they’ll have a townhall meeting to discuss the project and answer any questions. They’ll announce it on their website when they have the date.

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