Old Mississippi River Bridge due for a nearly $100M facelift

Structural steel repairs and a new coat of paint are entailed in a $74.8 million facelift planned for the U.S. 190 Old Mississippi River Bridge connecting Baton Rouge and Port Allen. The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development announced the project today. The first phase, scheduled to begin later this month and be complete in fall 2014, will include cleaning, painting and performing structural steel repairs to the roadway portion of the bridge. A joint venture by Liberty Main/Alpha Paint was awarded the job at $74.8 million, which consists of 80% federal and 20% state funding. The second phase will involve painting, cleaning and repairing the railroad portion of the bridge. DOTD anticipates accepting bids on this phase, which will likely cost between $15 million and $20 million, in late December. The bridge carries an average of 28,600 commuters daily. “These improvements will not only improve the beauty of this bridge, but also extend the life of the bridge for generations to come,” says DOTD Secretary Sherri LeBas in a statement.