Contractor Warns I-74 Bridge ‘Not Buildable’

Waterways Journal ^ | December 6, 2019 | Waterways Journal

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

The lead contractor for a Mississippi River bridge is involved in a now-public feud with the state of Iowa over whether the bridge is buildable.

The I-74 bridge is meant to replace a bridge on the same location connecting Moline, Ill, and Bettendorf, Iowa. Known as the Iowa-Illinois Memorial Bridge, the bridge is a pair of suspension bridges located near the geographic center of the Quad Cities.

The original bridge was designed by engineer Ralph Modjeski. The first span opened in 1935 as a toll bridge. In 1961, an identical twin span, built from the same blueprint, opened to facilitate increased traffic demands. The twin spans were merged with Interstate 74 in 1975.

[DannyTN]

I’m from Louisiana and we’ve been making up words since forever. We fabrispeak as necessary to get the job done.
If I’ve used it. It’s now a word.

[DannyTN]

By the way, “buildable” is in Mirriam Websters dictionary.

It’s been a word since at least 1855.
So, yeah, where did you go to school?

[\/\/ayne]

And if someone don't like the word they can talk to Amos Moses!

[DannyTN]

That’s right!!

[IndispensableDestiny]

If the bridge is unbuildable, the contractor should not have bid on the job.

[stylin19a]

all words are made up.

besides...I think I saw a snail darter last time I was there...

[GingisK]

I’ve never seen that in use. Was it marked archaic?

[SolidRedState]

It may just be perspective, but that bridge does not look capable of allowing for much barge traffic on the river.

[GingisK]

I feel more like I do now than when I first got here.

[DannyTN]

No, they do say it's in the bottom 20% of words. And they cite two examples of use on the Web. One by the Washington Post. So fake news uses it. M

Dictionary- buildable

[willyd]

Its called negotiating the contract after the fact... happens on these big projects.

[PAR35]

Lunda Construction has a high level of experience in constructing small box culverts. So when they say they can’t build a large bridge, they probably know what they are talking about.

I do wonder if there are some ‘affirmative action’ elements to the issue.

[HartleyMBaldwin]

I thought he just knocked them in the head with his stump, yet your illustration shows him using some sort of bludgeon. I’m so confused.

[cymbeline]

“It will be a helluva nice bridge if it ever does get finished.”

Looks like it. Beautiful. Not another one of those straight-cable suspension bridges.

[cymbeline]

“...buildable...”? Why do people make words up so often these days?

It’s a word according to dictionary com.

[GingisK]

Already been addressed in previous posts.

[JohnBovenmyer]

#14 shows how the final bridge is supposed to look. The tower (on the downstream Iowa side) is an elevator to an observation deck, which IIRC connects to a bike and pedestrian path across the bridge. There is a one tow at a time lock and dam a couple miles downstream so barge traffic there is already single file so the river passage should be fine for the main channel. The project is about a year behind schedule. Since the source article the head of the Iowa DOT has been fired by Gov. Reynolds and some incremental progress has been made on installing the much delayed arches. Illinois DOT must also be involved in this project, but has received little press coverage. Trying to get something accomplished while waiting for arches and a new bridge they are doing more of the inland work now rather than awaiting new bridge connections. But that forces 'interstate' traffic onto city streets on both sides of the river and for awhile had traffic stopping for trains.

The new bridge overlaps the position of the paired old bridges which further complicates the construction. IIRC the westbound part of the new bridge is to be completed first, westbound traffic routed thereon and then at least part of the old westbound bridge will have to be demolished before the new eastbound portion can be completed. Building the bridge elsewhere was considered, but LOTS of business were invested along the old right of way and didn't want the greatest traffic density in town relocated. There are decent bridges on the interstate beltway either side of town, but the two other bridges in town, where the traffic is, are both much smaller, old, and one has to open to let barges pass. Most of our eggs are in this basket, with the old bridge really feeling inadequate for a couple decades now. It will be nice when/if they get it done, but until then, yes Bettendorf (and Davenport, Moline, Rock Island, ...) has a problem. Although WE were all aware of it well before this four week old brief source was linked here.

At least we hadn't previously been overly sucking from the Federal trough. Our two interstate beltway bridges were federally constructed as was our the 1896 swing bridge overlying lock and dam 15 and connecting the island of Rock Island, and its arsenal to both sides. But both halves of the old (since adopted by I74) bridge here and the other old smaller bridge were all locally built and funded, then including tolls. Rather than wait on the feds we should have set up an Interstate compact, and taxed ourselves to repay 20-30 year bonds. And we could have been done 10+ years ago. Arguing over the size of the individual tax bite at different possible sites might have generated sufficient site dependent donations to cut the total involuntary bite.

[texas booster]

That illustration can't be of the Mississippi.

The water is colored blue.

Ain't no way.

[trebb]

So - they could do things in the 30s and 60s that they can’t do now - progress as rendered by “progressives”....

[SolidRedState]

WOW! Excellent explanation and information. Thank you!