LAKE OZARK – Rehabilitation of the Business Route 54 Bagnell Dam bridge will begin Tuesday.
Rehabilitation on the Bagnell Dam bridge in Lake Ozark begins Tuesday. The bridge will be closed for up to three months while work takes place. Learn more at https://t.co/aAS9rCkmXL. pic.twitter.com/DKptsgZfCP
— MoDOT Central District (@MoDOT_Central) September 2, 2021
The existing bridge was built in 1929, and rehabilitation is necessary to extend the life of the bridge. Work on the bridge will include repairs to the bridge deck, expansion joints, sidewalks and barrier walls and replacement the bridge driving.
“Some of the curbs are, you know, what we call spalling away where the concrete is disintegrating,” Robert Lynch, MoDOT’S area engineer, said.
During repairs, Business Route 54 will be closed at the bridge for approximately three months.
“It’s time to do that rehabilitation project and continue to get another 15 years out of it,” Lynch said.
The Bagnell Dam strip will continue to be open. Drivers will need to used an alternate route while work takes place.
Locals believe that this route will be hard for tourists to navigate and a hassle for those trying to get through.
“I think there is going to be a lot more traffic,” Lake of the Ozarks local Tyler Hawk said. “It’s going to be a lot more busier.”
But it is also known that these repairs are needed to keep travel across the bridge a safe experience.
“What if something were to break?” Hawk said. “It is going to help a lot because there is a lot of people that walk across.”
