09.29.2009 8:44 am
King bridge will close Oct. 12-24, weather permitting
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
UPDATED with closure dates
The Illinois Department of Transportation said the Martin Luther King Bridge will close from Oct. 12-Oct. 24, weather permitting, to undergo the $1.4 million makeover that will change it from a four-lane span to three.
The bridge over the Mississippi River will reopen with two eastbound lanes and a single westbound lane. Oncoming cars will be separated by a 3-foot-tall concrete barrier to prevent crossovers. Traffic lanes will go to 12 feet wide from 10 feet wide.
The bridge makeover comes in light of years of crossover accidents, some fatal, and close calls between motorists driving the narrow lanes of the bridge.
It’s a good idea to make the King Bridge 3 lanes but they’re doing it backwards. There should be two lanes westbound and one lane eastbound. There is a daily backup coming westbound into the city but since the eastbound approaches are controlled by traffic lights, there isn’t a backup (on the bridge) heading out of the city. The coordination of the lights at the approaches to the west end is another story.
Has anyone from IDOT been on the bridge during the morning commute -the lanes should be two west bound. Does anyone remember the traffic problems when the casino was being built and there were lane closures or even more recent with the work under the highway - twenty minutes to get across the bridge is crazy. I believe the lower speed limit has helped - this is going to be a nightmare - on going. This will force more traffic to the Eads Bridge and eventually there will be a greater risk for crossover accidents on that bridge as well.
Anyone know why IDOT decided on 2 eastbound lanes and only 1 westbound? Seems to me that the WB lanes are the ones that get backed up.
Let me get this straight… after years of accidents due in part to the “narrow lanes of the bridge,” we’re now going to make the bridge NARROWER?? Did Illinois not have anything else to spend their stimulus money on?
Michael, the width of the lanes will increase by two feet to 12 feet wide.
Did they look at movable barriers like in San Diego? That way the two lane traffic can change with the commute and the protective barrier will still be in place.
Right wrong or indifferent I beleive they had no choice regarding two lanes heading east due to the St. Louis emergency action plan. I thought I read that the MLK is part of the evacuation route and they needed the two lanes heading out.
They are doing 2 lanes east because they don’t want traffic backing up into the city. Still, I think this is a bad idea. It’s going to causes much more than 3 minute delays westbound on the morning commute now. They people need to seriously make that drive themselves for a month and see what any accident/construction delay really does to the time.
They need to keep 2 lanes in each direction and ban trucks.
Has anyone noticed that the second “I” is missing from the acronym “IDOT”. We must have two westbound lanes are traffic will be backed up on the Illinois approach for miles. Also, the afternoon crossing is MUCH more flexible for drivers going home vs. work on time. This decision obviously went thru the governor’s office in Illinois at whatever prison it is now located.
If anyone with sense at IDOT reads this, PLEASE make the lanes express and reversible for the commutes. That is clearly the best option here.
Michael,
They are not making the bridge NARROWER, genius. They are making the lanes wider.