The Rocheport Bridge on I-70 is slated for an upgrade.
The bridge was originally built in 1960 and it shows. MoDOT plans on shutting down parts of the bridge in the spring of next year to make repairs. MODOT Area engineer Mike Schopp said the salt and chemicals put on the bridge due to recent winter storms are deteriorating the paint and steel.
"You have deterioration of the steel structural elements. We know we’ve got joints that need work and we know we’ve got structural steel members that need work. Now the bridge is still safe, but we know that even doing this rehab project that that bridge only has about ten years’ worth of life left in it."
The current plan is to repair the bridge to extend its life, but MoDOT would rather rebuild the bridge with the assistance of a federal grant. The rebuild project would start in twenty twenty if the project is approved at the end of this year.
The rehab project is scheduled to begin next spring and would take seven to nine months to complete the renovations on both sides of the bridge.