Engineers name Stan Span top project of past year in bi-state area

From Illinois Business Journal news services

The project to construct the Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge and relocate Interstate 70 was named the top construction project for 2014 in the two-state area by the American Council of Engineering Companies in Missouri and Illinois.

The council selected the project as the recipient of the Constructor Award – the project of the year. The project now goes forward to national competition. That award will be announced during the ACEC national meeting in April.

The Missouri Department of Transportation “Express Lane” reported Thursday that the project was selected for its many benefits to the St. Louis metropolitan region. First, it reduced congestion on the Poplar Street Bridge, based on initial counts the overall traffic was reduced by about 19 percent for the first few months of use, with nearly 33 percent of the truck traffic moving to the new bridge.

Secondly, it reduced congestion. The department has heard of commutes of 10 minutes less, on average. Thirdly, it provided needed interstate redundancy through the heart of the United States, both for Homeland Security and for commuters.

The Poplar Street Bridge was identified as a potential target since it carried three interstates into St. Louis City. With the new Stan Musial Veterans Memorial bridge, interstate commerce is improved with the new option, and commuters have options if there is a crash on either on or near either the Poplar Street or the Stan Musial Veterans Memorial bridge.

The Construction Award is given to the project in each state based on design excellence, the degree to which the clients’ needs are met, as well as benefit to the public welfare and to the private practice of engineering.