Editor's note: This story was originally published by the Belleville News-Democrat.
There’s good news for residents, businesses, churches, first responders and motorists who live in or travel through East St. Louis.
The Illinois Department of Transportation has begun repairing the 26th Street bridge in East St. Louis, and it may reopen sooner than originally planned, according to Kirk Brown, the agency’s Region 5 engineer.
The bridge has been closed since April 14 after a truck slammed into support trusses, causing significant damage and raising questions about the span’s safety.
The closing has left residents and others concerned and frustrated by the pace of repair, the limited access to their neighborhoods, their safety and other concerns.
Work on the bridge began earlier this month.
“The work involves providing supports for the structures,” Brown told the Belleville News-Democrat. “We are removing the damaged components that were damaged in the incident. We are replacing and or strengthening some of the damaged members with new steel members. When that is complete, the bridge will be able to be reopened.”
Brown, when asked how many “members” were damaged, said: “It would be hard to say. Every steel component represents a member. You could say dozens.”
All of the damage occurred on the south portion of the bridge, Brown said. “The truck that hit the bridge was traveling northbound and hit the south base of the truss bridge,” he said.
Brown said the agency had hoped to be finished with the project by the end of August or beginning of September. “But if things continue to go well, we expect it could be opened much earlier,” he said. “ But, we want to wait and see how progress goes. We don’t want to rush them or over promise.”
Residents and local business people were happy to hear the news about work beginning on the bridge.
“I am ecstatic,” said Linda Joiner, an East St. Louis resident. “This is good news. It really is good news. That’s fantastic.
“We just need to know somebody is taking it seriously. I feel that they are. But you gotta show people…the ones that (are) in power at least care about us.
“We need to know we are not being ignored. In East St. Louis, a lot of times we become complacent with nothing being done. We flood. We have potholes. Crime is high. The bridge is blocked.”
Joiner’s mother, a lifelong resident, lives nearby. Joiner said she and her mother were trapped during recent flash flooding, from the floodwaters and the bridge closing.
“The streets were blocked on 24th and Bond Avenue, which is by Mount Zion Church,” she said. “My mom is right in the middle. I said, ‘Oh my God, we’re flooded,’ and trapped on the left and the bridge is closed on the right. We’re in the middle of two East St. Louis catastrophes right now.”
In April, Elizabeth Whiteside was on her way to work in East St. Louis and said she was right behind the truck that slammed into the bridge.
“I was going toward Missouri Avenue from Bond Avenue. A man driving a big truck hit the viaduct on the Bond Avenue side,” she told the BND. “He had the back of his truck up and that’s what hit the top of the bridge. I called 911 and told them. All of the traffic was backed up on the Bond Avenue side.”
She said she and others were slowly navigating their way around the truck. “It was very hard to get around him, but I was able to make it,” she said.
Asked if the driver was able to continue driving, Whiteside said no. “He couldn’t go anywhere,” she said.
Police have not released any information about the accident. Brown said the company that owns the truck will be responsible for paying for the repairs, which will cost thousands of dollars.
Dealing with the closing of the bridge has been traumatic for the community, Whiteside said.
“The problem now is the impact it has on us. That’s a main thoroughfare to Missouri Avenue,” she said. “If we have to get an ambulance call, it’s going to take a minute.
“At 19th Street, you better pray that a train is not on that end. If you turn and go into the Cahokia Heights area to go over to 42nd Street over to Pocket Road, there’s a train track right there. Sometimes there’s a train on both of the tracks.”
Whiteside’s normal five- to seven-minute commute to work is now 30 minutes or longer, depending on the traffic, she said. The fix can’t come quickly enough for her.
“I am sure the entire community feels the same way,” Whiteside said.
She also wants the transportation department to fix the roads. “There were so many craters on the roads that go over the bridge,” she said.
She said huge trucks come through East St. Louis every day and have to take alternative routes because the bridge is closed. It can tie up traffic and damage the roads. She said she believes trucking companies should pay for repairs.
“Sometimes they come through there with a wide load and everybody has to get off the road to let those trucks through,” she said. “It’s not good at all. It’s a mess.”
Bruce Jung, owner of Jung Truck Service Inc., a Mascoutah-based business with a location on McCasland Avenue in East St. Louis, is happy that the bridge work has started.
He said about 250 trucks a day come and go from his business, and with the bridge closing, "they are all bunched up because of the trains.” The 26th Street bridge allows motorists, including trucks, to avoid cross over Norfolk Southern railroad tracks that run beneath the structure.
“We are glad they started working on it,” Jung said. “ I’ve got to give the state and the engineers kudos. They’re doing what they said they were going to do in the time line they said they were going to do it. It might be sooner rather than later.
“Hopefully the citizens won’t be inconvenienced much longer. We’re looking forward to everyone being able to move freely about the city, especially our police officers and emergency responders.”
Businessman John McIntosh was happy to hear that an end to the bridge closure is near as it has had a devastating effect on his business, New York Cleaners on State Street.
“Thank God,” he said after he heard the news. “Definitely overdue. But, I am glad to see some progress being made. Obviously we would like to have it accessible sooner rather than later.”
The bridge closing has caused headaches for the business and its customers, he said.
“It’s been a nightmare for my trucks getting in and out and a headache for my customers getting me,” McIntosh said. “I have been trying to persevere and hold on. I am ecstatic that they are doing the repairs to the bridge.”
Myshoska Harris, a lifelong resident, said in a voice filled with emotion that she’s “very, very glad” the Illinois Department of Transportation is making progress.
“It’s been a long time for us. I am happy to see it didn’t take eight months or a year,” she said. “I hope they get it done as soon as possible, but not a rush job…do it right. We don’t want to have to close it for some reason right after they fix it.”
She said she also hopes the state agency will pave the road. “I am a concerned citizen. I want it right for everybody,” she said.
Brown, the transportation department engineer, said the agency is going to do some road surface repairs on 26th Street.
Brown said Illinois Department of Transportation officials know that the bridge closure would have a big impact, but they wanted to ensure people’s safety.
“We thank them for their patience," he said. "We know it’s been an inconvenience. We are working as hard as we can to get this back open as soon as we can."
Carolyn P. Smith is a reporter with the Belleville News-Democrat, a news partner of St. Louis Public Radio.
