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Transportation Bill Will Cover Some Cost of New Area Bridge

Posted on: Thursday, 28 July 2005, 15:00 CDT

Jul. 28--WASHINGTON -- A long-stalled multibillion-dollar transportation bill will include at least $75 million -- and possibly much more -- for one of the St. Louis region's top infrastructure priorities: a new Mississippi River bridge.

House and Senate negotiators neared final agreement Wednesday on the six-year, $286.4 billion bill. Lawmakers hope to finish it today or Friday before they leave for an August recess.

At the behest of local lawmakers, the negotiators agreed to significantly increase the amount of money tagged for the new bridge. An earlier version of the bill had set the amount at $44.6 million.

"This should put it on the path to completion," said Sen. Christopher "Kit" Bond, R-Mo., who as a chief architect of the legislation worked to secure the $75 million along with other bistate-area lawmakers. Sens. Dick Durbin and Barack Obama, both Illinois Democrats, got $20 million into the bill for the bridge, but it was unclear Wednesday night whether that was in addition to or part of the $75 million.

Rep. Jerry Costello, D-Belleville, said he expected the final bill to include even more money for the bridge.

Costello was trying to extract additional funds -- as much as $350 million -- for the bridge from a $3 billion pool included in the bill for "mega-projects" of national significance. "The only way the new bridge will happen is with mega-project funding," Costello said.

Missouri and Illinois transportation officials believe the much-anticipated bridge would ease congestion on the Poplar Street Bridge and is crucial to curbing rush-hour delays for interstate commuters. But there are concerns about the bridge's $1.6 billion price tag, and Illinois officials announced Monday that the two states had hired an engineering firm to slash the cost of the new structure. They are also considering putting tolls on the bridge -- a move Costello and others oppose.

The $75 million in federal funds will ease, but not erase, the financial considerations.

Overall, Bond said Missouri will get over $200 million a year under the new bill for highways and other transportation needs. Costello said a similar figure for Illinois was not available yet because congressional aides were still tinkering with the compromise and running the figures.

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Copyright (c) 2005, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

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Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch

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