Iowa DOT News

Public hearing announced for I-80 Mississippi River Bridge Study


AMES, Iowa – Oct. 18, 2024 – As part of the Interstate 80 Mississippi River Bridge Study, the Iowa Department of Transportation, in partnership with the Illinois Department of Transportation, will hold an online public hearing and offer an in-person open house option to present study information, detail the preferred alternative for the project, discuss potential impacts and receive input from the public.

The online hearing will be held at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 29. People can register for the hearing with their name and email address at I80MississippiBridge.com. In addition to a presentation of exhibits and maps, the hearing will include a video and question-and-answer panel with personnel from the Illinois and Iowa departments of transportation.

An in-person open house will be held at LeClaire City Hall, 325 Wisconsin St., LeClaire, Iowa, on Wednesday, Oct. 30, with stakeholders welcome at any time between 1 and 3 p.m. The in-person opportunity will include continuous video presentations, exhibit boards, opportunities to speak with representatives of the project team and provide feedback. No formal presentation will be given.

The I-80 Mississippi River Bridge was built in the 1960s, one of three major interstate bridges in the Quad Cities. The bridge has required significant rehabilitation in recent years, increasing traffic and crashes. The aging bridge continues to face costly maintenance expenses, and the roadway design does not meet current standards.

The preferred alternative, combining improvements to the I-80 Mississippi River Bridge and the I-88/I-80 interchange, was presented for public review and comment at a fourth, public meeting last November. Since then, the project team has further refined the preferred alternative based on public feedback and the ongoing priority of reducing public impacts wherever possible.

Hearing materials will be available following the events at I80MississippiBridge.com. Comments are always welcome. Those received through Tuesday, Nov. 13, will become part of the hearing record. The project is currently in Phase I: Preliminary Engineering & Environmental Studies, which is expected to conclude with a final report in early 2025. The project is then expected to move to Phase II: Final Design & Construction Plans, with construction tentative to begin in 2028.

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