On Dec. 19, 2024, the Allenton Bridge was closed by the city of Eureka after an annual inspection from the Missouri Department of Transportation. The inspection notice resulted in the City of Eureka announcing a permanent closure due to the safety concerns, and plans to rebuild the bridge are at a standstill.
In April of 2018, Prop E was passed by Eureka voters and included a city-wide sales tax of one-half of one percent to fund flood mitigation, the construction of a new police station and road and bridge infrastructure.
Flood mitigation was also a part of Prop E when it passed, with the city of Eureka collaborating with Keeley Construction to construct two flood walls and pumps in Old Town Eureka, with the project expected to be completed during the third quarter of 2025.
According to Leader Publications, the Allenton Bridge replacement project, which would have widened the two-lane bridge to four lanes with a pedestrian lane to help with traffic flow, was put on hold due to higher than expected repair costs.
The cost to repair the bridge was originally estimated to be around $1 million to $1.3 million dollars, but due to increased costs later ballooned to an approximate $7 million to $18 million. This led to the City of Eureka announcing that the replacement was not economically feasible. The bridge has been permanently closed ever since.
This closure has affected students that live in the area, adding time to their daily commute to and from Allenton.
“Traffic in my neighborhood almost tripled and it sometimes gets annoying, especially for people who drive under the speed limit, which happens more often than not,” Justin Gentilini, 11, said.
While the bridge closure has affected people living in the neighborhood, some residents believe it’s not as much of an inconvenience as people believe.
“While there have been many downsides, aside from rush hour, the traffic has remained relatively the same throughout Eureka,” Hayden Frazier, 11, said. “The closure of the bridge is inconvenient at times, but manageable, and obviously we still hope for a new bridge to be installed when it is realistic.”
According to West Newsmagazine, the location of the bridge also makes it difficult for a possible new design. The bridge is overseen by three other entities, Union Pacific Railroad, Burlington Northern Railroad and MoDOT can all review the possible design plans for the Allenton Bridge due to their relation to the bridge. Between 2019 and the summer of 2024, the city had made design plans for the most economical bridge that would meet the requirements of all three entities.
Although plans have fallen through in regards to the Allenton Bridge, Mayor Sean Flower and the city haven’t given up on it completely, as Flower wrote on the official Eureka website stating that they will be looking into more options regarding getting the bridge repaired and up and running again.
“Over the past month myself and several Aldermen have been discussing this with some of the most impacted residents, and trying to assess this information and look at options for moving forward. At this time, we are on hold with the project while we pursue more funding from the State. If we are not successful, we will need to continue looking at other options,” Flower’s statement read.
