LITTLE ROCK (5-13) – TheArkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT) and the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) are working together to safely repair and reopen the Interstate 40 Bridge over the Mississippi River, according to agency officials.

Today the two transportation agencies have accomplished the following:

• Generated a computer model of the bridge and adjusted it to include the damages and current conditions. Now that the model closely matches the real situation it will be used to test future repairs.
• Discussed the current situation and risk factor of reopening the river to barge traffic with the Coast Guard so that they could evaluate and decide if it is safe to resume operations in that waterway.
• Agreed that the first step is to complete temporary repairs designed to guarantee the safety of personnel and equipment required to be on the structure while putting the long term repairs into place.

A new webpage, dedicated to this closure of the I-40 Mississippi River Bridge, is available. You can also stay current on this issue by following @myARDOT on Twitter and explore using the hashtag #40MSRiverBridge. Find additional information at IDriveArkansas.com or ARDOT.gov.

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