HANNIBAL, Mo. — Weather permitting, Monday, April 27, Pike County Route U will close at Peno Creek, located one mile west of U.S. Route 61 near Bowling Green, for replacement.  The contract for this project also includes two additional bridge replacements located on Route C, over Crooked Branch, 2 miles west of Route E near Frankford and on Route U (Old U.S. Route 61) 0.2 miles west of U.S. Route 61 near Bowling Green.

The contract for these projects was awarded earlier this year to Bleigh Construction Company of Hannibal, Missouri who submitted the low bid of $1,897,582.  These bridges are included in Gov. Mike Parson’s $351 million Focus on Bridges program, which will repair or replace 250 bridges across the state.

Work on the second bridge located on Route U (Old U.S. 61) is set to begin in early June in hopes of completion by Labor Day.  “While work on both bridges on Route U will overlap, the intersection just west off U.S. 61 will remain open, allowing access to locations between the two bridges,” explained Missouri Department of Transportation Area Engineer Brian Untiedt.   The final bridge replacement included in the contract, located on Route C, is tentatively scheduled to begin mid-August.  Work on these projects will take place this year and be completed by December 1, 2020.

Spring is here and highway work zones are beginning to pop up in Missouri.  Barrel Bob, MoDOT’s official work zone spokesbarrel, says as you approach a work zone, please don’t drive distracted.  Always buckle up and put your phone down for your safety and the safety of highway workers.  All work zones are online at www.modot.org, and you can receive the latest news about road work in your area by signing up for e-updates.