CLOSURE ANTICIPATED TO LAST THROUGH THE SUMMER
City of Platte City officials say the Missouri Department of Transportation has informed them that the Hwy. 92 bridge over I-29 in Platte City will be closed for repair beginning Monday, June 10.
MoDOT also told the city that it expects the repairs to be completed prior to Aug. 20, the first day of fall classes of the Platte County R-3 School District based in Platte City.
City administrator DJ Gehrt announced the news at a city public works committee meeting Monday night at City Hall. On Tuesday afternoon a MoDOT official confirmed the planned June 10 closing date with The Landmark.
State officials have said the Hwy. 92 bridge over Interstate 29 will need to be closed entirely when repairs to the recently-damaged bridge begin. 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, recently told The Landmark that the winning bid for the repair project went to Emery Sapp and Sons in the amount of $699,293, which is considerably under what MoDOT engineers had estimated. MoDOT had set the estimate at $1.2 million.
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.
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.
