Massive Bitterroot Bridges Project Nearly Complete

Crews are about to begin work on the rehab of a key bridge crossing over the Bitterroot River, which may cause a few delays to your regular commute.

However, once this bridge is finished, the Montana Department of Transportation and its contractors will have completed a massive undertaking, repairing 38 aging bridges throughout the Bitterroot Valley.

It's an effort to save the bridges by doing key restoration work, which will allow them to continue to be used in the coming years and save the expense of replacing entire spans.

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Why are bridges being repaired in the Bitterroot?

The work is called the "South of Missoula Bridge Preservation Project" and was launched last year as a comprehensive effort to keep more than 3 dozen spans throughout the Bitterroot Valley from reaching a point where safety could be a risk. In worst-case scenarios, the state would have to spend millions of dollars on replacement.

The bridges were all constructed between 1949 and 2011. The later bridges were constructed during the extensive project to build U.S. 93 out to four lanes from Stevensville to Hamilton. Engineers say the preservation project is a way to ensure the bridges will remain in service for years to come.

Work resuming this spring

Last year, MDT and L&J Construction Group completed repairs on 37 of the 38 bridges. That included Highway 93 bridges, Bell Crossing West, and the Eastside Highway. Work varied depending on the conditions of each span. Bridge decks were repaired, cracks were sealed, and the bridge joints and approaches were fixed. The work was postponed because of the weather last fall.

There will be some single-lane closures and minor delays.

“Our contractor L & J did a great job at making sure work on this project went smoothly and quickly.” -Che Hassan, MDT Missoula District Engineering Project Manager.

Now, crews are getting back to work on the 38th and last bridge on the list, the one spanning the Bitterroot River on S 531, just west of Hamilton. They'll be crack sealing the bridge deck and applying final epoxy paint markings, so MDT says the work should only take a week to finish.