ST. CLOUD, Minn. -- Work on the new Minnesota Highway 23 bridge in St. Cloud has been slowed by harsh weather this winter, but the construction company says the project will be finished on schedule.
Bruce Reihl of Lunda Construction says crews have had to deal with 2-3 feet of ice on the Mississippi River and bitterly cold temperatures that sometimes kept them from working.
Nonetheless, the company says the $36 million bridge is scheduled to be open by November.
The old DeSoto bridge was closed to traffic in March 2008 after inspectors found four slightly bent gusset plates. It was demolished in October.
The old bridge shared the same design as the Minneapolis bridge that fell on Aug. 1, and like other Minnesota bridges it was re-inspected after the collapse.
Investigators concluded the bridge collapsed because of the failure of undersized gusset plates, which help connect steel beams.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
