Public hearing announced for I-80 Mississippi River bridge study

DIXON – As part of the Interstate 80 Mississippi River Bridge study, the Illinois Department of Transportation, in partnership with the Iowa Department of Transportation, will hold an online public hearing and offer an in-person open house option to present study information, detail the preferred alternative for the project, discuss potential effects and receive input from the public.

The online hearing will be at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 29. People can register for the hearing with their name and email address at I80MississippiBridge.com.

In addition to a presentation of exhibits and maps, the hearing will include a video and question-and-answer panel with personnel from the Illinois and Iowa Departments of Transportation.

An in-person open house will be Wednesday, Oct. 30, at LeClaire City Hall, 325 Wisconsin St., LeClaire, Iowa. Stakeholders are welcome any time from 1 to 3 p.m.

The in-person event will include continuous video presentations and exhibit boards as well as opportunities to speak with representatives of the project team and provide feedback. No formal presentation will be given.

The I-80 Mississippi River bridge was built in the 1960s, one of three major interstate bridges in the Quad-Cities. The bridge has required significant rehabilitation in recent years because of increased traffic and crashes. The aging bridge continues to face costly maintenance expenses, and the road design does not meet current standards.

The preferred alternative combining improvements to the I-80 Mississippi River bridge and the I-88/I-80 interchange was presented for public review and comment at a public meeting in November 2023. Since then, the project team has further refined the preferred alternative based on public feedback and the ongoing priority of reducing effects to the public wherever possible.

Hearing materials will be available at I80MississippiBridge.com after the events.

Comments are always welcome. Comments received through Tuesday, Nov. 13, will become part of the hearing record.

The project is in phase one, a phase of preliminary engineering and environmental studies, which is expected to conclude with a final report in early 2025. The project then is expected to move to phase two, final design and construction plans, with construction tentatively set to begin in 2028.

The project is being funded as part of the Rebuild Illinois capital program, which is investing $33.2 billion into all modes of transportation.