Skip to content

New Quad Cities bridge over the Mississippi River opens

The 3,464-foot (1,056-meter) span is supported by so-called “basket handle” arches that rise 164 feet (50 meters) above the roadway. The $1 billion project, nearly 90% of which came from federal money, replaces an initial bridge that opened in 1935.

Chicago Journal
Chicago Journal
| 1 min read
New Quad Cities bridge over the Mississippi River opens
The new I-74 bridge over the Mississippi River replaces the bridge built in 1935. The bridge was primarily paid for with federal dollars.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Officials from Illinois, Iowa, and the federal government are celebrating the completion of a new bridge carrying Interstate 74 over the Mississippi River.



State and local politicians and Federal Highway Administration staff members gathered on the the structure linking the Quad Cities recently to publicize its opening to traffic sometime this month.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said the bridge, under construction for four years, is one of the largest construction projects in state history.

The $1 billion project, nearly 90% of which came from federal money, replaces an initial bridge that opened in 1935. A second span was completed in 1960. The were combined into the I-74 corridor in the 1970s when the Illinois and Iowa departments of took joint ownership and maintenance. They’ll be removed next year.

The 3,464-foot (1,056-meter) span is supported by so-called “basket handle” arches that rise 164 feet (50 meters) above the roadway.

The bridge will have color-changing LED lights operated by its host cities, Moline and Bettendorf, Iowa.



InfrastructureBusinessIllinois NewsIllinois Business

Chicago Journal Twitter

The Chicago Journal is a general interest, digital publication focused on the political, cultural, and economic issues relevant to the city of Chicago and the surrounding metro area.


Related Posts

Cooperating ex-guard gets 6 years in Illinois inmate's death

The last of three ex-correctional officers convicted in the beating death of an Illinois prison inmate, was sentenced Wednesday to six years in federal prison after pleading guilty to civil rights violations and obstruction and testifying against his codefendants.

Cooperating ex-guard gets 6 years in Illinois inmate's death

Home invader fatally stabbed by resident in Rockford

A man and a woman inside the home were able to block the door and prevent the intruder from entering, but the suspect broke out a window and began hitting one of the residents with a piece of lumber, police said.

Home invader fatally stabbed by resident in Rockford

Illinois prison guard gets 20 years for inmate beating death

Earvin, who suffered from mental illness, was serving a six-year term for theft of merchandise under $300 in Cook County and was scheduled for release in September 2018. He also had a rap sheet dating to 1984.

Illinois prison guard gets 20 years for inmate beating death