When does the new McClugage Bridge open? Here's the latest on the transformation project
The McClugage Bridge project is "out of the river" and about 80% completed, with the new eastbound span expected to open to traffic this fall.
Crews are making the final westerly connections in Peoria County, said John Love, a civil engineer at the Illinois Department of Transportation.
The project is "officially out of the river," said Love, with the substructure in the water completed and the bridge's arch successfully relocated. About half of the deck driving surfaces have been poured, and miscellaneous work on the deck began over the winter.
How much is left of the McClugage Bridge project?
Remaining construction includes final substructure work on the Peoria side along the railroad tracks and finishing the deck driving surfaces. Once that is completed, Love said, traffic will be relocated off the existing eastbound structure and onto the new bridge across the Illinois River.
"Once traffic is in its final position on the new structure, demolition activities will begin," Love said, "and the removal process of the old bridge will be underway."
The entire project is expected to be completed by the summer of 2025.
More: Watch live traffic and road conditions on the McClugage Bridge in Peoria with BridgeCam
What will the McClugage Bridge project include?
The new span will feature three lanes of traffic, two wide shoulders, the distinctive arch and a multiuse path for pedestrians and bicyclists with a viewing area. The path will connect to two trailheads, one on each side of the river.
The opening date of the path is uncertain, Love said, as the contractor will be actively finishing construction after the bridge is open, and the path cannot open until work has safely been concluded.
In addition, there will be two new Ironworker Memorials, one at each trailhead. The memorials will commemorate an April 2000 incident when scaffolding slung 65 feet above the river during a bridge repair project gave way. Three of the men working were killed.
When did the McClugage Bridge project begin?
Construction of the bridge began in 2019, with a planned expense of about $167 million. Love said the contract remains on budget.
Love previously said the bridge "will definitely be a point of civic pride for many generations to come." The deck viewing area, or belvedere, in the center span "will offer beautiful views of the central Illinois landscape and the Peoria skyline."
For daily updates and bridge views, visit mcclugagebridge.com.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: When will the new McClugage Bridge open? What we know
