STATE EXPECTS A THREE-MONTH, $1.2 MILLION REPAIR PROJECT
The traffic situation at Hwy. 92 and I-29 in Platte City will get worse before it gets better.
State officials say the Hwy. 92 bridge over Interstate 29 will need to be closed entirely when repairs to the recently-damaged bridge begin, which should be later this month.
The heavily traveled four-lane bridge has been down to one lane of traffic in each direction since Jan. 31. The reduced load causes an extreme backup at the off ramp from northbound I-29 to Hwy. 92 (Exit 18) at busy times of the day, a backup that at times extends to the right hand lane of the interstate.
An extended excavator being transported on the back of a flatbed truck struck the bridge on Jan. 22. The truck had entered I-29 from HH, a short distance north of the Hwy. 92 bridge. The impact from the excavator “sheered through concrete and rebar” in three sections of the bridge, officials said.
State officials originally closed the bridge entirely after the Jan. 22 incident. After inspections were performed, the state reopened one lane of traffic in each direction on Jan. 31, and it has remained that way since that time.
Ben McCabe, transportation project manager for the Missouri Department of Transportation for the Kansas City District, this week told The Landmark that plans to repair the bridge have been prepared and were advertised for construction on April 18.
“The project should be awarded at this week’s Highway Commission meeting,” McCabe said on Tuesday.
McCabe said repair will include full replacement of impacted concrete girders. He said portions of the deck of the bridge will need to be removed to allow access to the concrete girders.
“This will require full closure of the Hwy. 92 bridge over I-29 while repairs are being made,” McCabe explained.
“There will be a pre-construction meeting once the project is awarded and that is when we should find out a better schedule,” McCabe added.
The engineer said the best guess is construction will start “toward the end of May and be completed over the summer before the next school year.”
First day of classes for the ’24-25 school year at the Platte County R-3 School District based in Platte City will be Aug. 20.
McCabe said the estimated cost of repair is $1.2 million. Exact cost will not be known until bids are awarded.
McCabe said the state “will explore our options for recovering costs” from those responsible for the damage.
When the bridge was initially closed in January the ramps at I-29 and Hwy. 92 interchange remained open to right turns only. The suggested detour is typically to utilize I-29 to adjacent interchanges at Mexico City Ave., and at Main Street/Route HH.
