Jul 14, 2008 7:00 pm US/Central
Answering Your New I-35W Bridge Questions
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) ―
Crews working on the new Interstate 35W bridge poured seven feet of concrete on the main river span and continued painting the south side on Monday. They're also paving the north side.
The bridge is on pace to open in September or October, earlier than the projected Christmas Eve end date. Now that the bridge is so close to carrying traffic, there are many questions about its past and future.
The remains of the collapsed I-35W bridge are still where they've been for nearly a year. How long will they stay there?
"We will retain that stored at the Bohemian Flats until the NTSB report is out and finalized," said Minnesota Department of Transportation Project Manager John Chiglo. Then MnDOT will move the remains and keep them for seven years.
Another issue puzzling drivers: the bridge is designed with five lanes each direction but only three lanes greet motorists on the other end.
"What is the purpose of the five lanes?" asked motorist Dave Carlson.
"One of those five lanes is what we call an auxiliary lane," said Chiglo. MnDOT said the lane is meant for longer, safer entrances and exits. However, they admit bottlenecks will occur at times.
To ease congestion after the bridge collapse, extra lanes were added to Interstate 94 and elsewhere. Will those lanes remain open once the bridge opens?
"All those changes that we made back in September will be evaluated for their performance to date," said Chiglo. In other words, they don't know yet.
The bridge contractor gets $20 million extra to finish the bridge early. Will the workers received a bonus check?
According to Flatiron Construction, the workers won't directly receive anything. They said most of that bonus is already spent on overtime wages and equipment.
MnDOT insists the speed at which the bridge is going up is not at the expense of safety for the workers or the public. They say extra precautions are being taken to prevent accidents or mistakes.
MnDOT is considering letting the public walk over the bridge for a closer look before it opens to traffic. But when it does open, who should be the first to drive over the new bridge?
"The first person to drive over, I think the families of the people who died," said motorist Denise Carlson.
MnDOT is still trying to determine who will be the first to drive over the bridge.
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