MoDOT to close Route U bridge for repairs

TONY BROWN/DAILY FORUM
The Missouri Department of Transportation will close the 54-year-old One Hundred and Two River Bridge just east of Arkoe next Monday for a re-decking project expected to last through September. During the project, motorists will be directed onto signed detours encompassing routes N, M, and Highway 71.

Route U at Arkoe in south Nodaway County will close next week while the Missouri Department of Transportation replaces the deck on the One Hundred and Two River bridge.

According to a MoDOT release, the bridge, located just east of the village, which has a population of around 70, will remain closed to all traffic from 8 a.m. Monday, July 11, through the end of September while re-decking work is carried out by general contractor Widel Inc. of Blackwater.

Built in 1962, the span carries approximately 880 vehicles daily, the state transportation agency said.

During the project, motorists will be directed onto signed detours encompassing routes N, M, and Highway 71.

A MoDOT spokesperson said Wednesday that the bridge, which currently offers a single 20-foot-wide lane, would be widened and divided into two 11-foot-wide lanes in order to accommodate two-way traffic. The span is slightly more than 300 feet long.

From Maryville, motorists will be able to reach farms and residences east of Arkoe along Route U by driving east on Highway 136 then south and east on Route F before continuing south on Route N and west on Route U.

Drivers traveling north from Savannah on Highway 71 will turn east on Route M, pass through Barnard, and then proceed north on Route N to Route U.

All work is weather permitting and schedules are subject to change.

For more information, call 888-275-6636 or go to www.modot.org/northwest and view the online traveler information map.