Staff report

Mississippi Department of Transportation crews have completed the bridge replacement project on State Route 328 in Lafayette County.

The existing bridge was removed and replaced with a new drainage structure. Crews will be removing the detour sites and completing the final dressing and grassing slopes in the construction area. Motorists are urged to continue to use caution while workers are present in the work zone.

The project is one of several in District 2, which includes Lafayette, DeSoto, Coahoma, Marshall, Panola, Quitman and Tate Tagert.

“The Mississippi Department of Transportation has announced updates to several major infrastructure improvement projects in north Mississippi,” said Transportation Commissioner Mike Tagert. “The projects are spread throughout DeSoto, Coahoma, Marshall, Panola, Quitman and Tate Counties in the northwestern portion of the state, and will greatly improve safety and mobility in the region.”

Other projects include:

— U.S. Highway 51 Coldwater River Bridge Replacement in Tate County: The replacement of the U.S. 51 bridge over the Coldwater River was let to contract at the beginning of June 2016. The project will replace the existing 1,100-foot bridge with a new 2,000-foot bridge and raise the roadway by 6 feet to prevent future flooding. Crews have begun clearing the right-of-way along U.S. 51.

This bridge was originally scheduled for replacement in November 2016, however damage sustained to the bridge during a March flood event caused MDOT to close the bridge and move the project timeline forward. MDOT closed the Coldwater River Bridge on March 11, and it will remain closed until the replacement project is complete.

A signed detour route is in place directing motorists to use Interstate 55 between Hernando and Coldwater. MDOT anticipates the project will be completed in spring 2018.

— Interstate 269 in DeSoto and Marshall counties: Construction of the Interstate 269 project continues and is on schedule in north Mississippi. The Interstate 269 project is the largest active MDOT construction project in the state. Dirt and bridgework for the entire Interstate 269 corridor has been completed. The next phase of the project involves two separate paving projects, the largest of which has been let to contract, and work has already begun. The second paving project is scheduled to be let in September. MDOT expects Interstate to be ready for traffic in the fall of 2018.

The first section of Interstate 269, from Mississippi 302 to the Tennessee state line in Marshall County, was opened to traffic on Oct. 23, 2015.

— State Route 6/U.S. Highway 278 bridge replacement in Coahoma, Quitman and Panola Counties:

MDOT has begun a project to replace and repair bridges along State Route 6/ U.S. Highway 278 between Clarksdale and Batesville in Coahoma, Quitman and Panola Counties. The project includes 11 bridges that will be replaced and two that will be repaired. The 13 bridges included in this project are on MDOT’s structurally deficient bridge list.

Detour bridges and roads are currently being constructed. To date, crews have completed repairs on one of the bridges over the Tallahatchie River in Panola County. MDOT anticipates that the project will be completed in its entirety by mid-fall 2017.

Funding for this project came from funds made available from the passage of the “Gamin Bill” during the 2015 Regular Legislative Session. This bill authorizes the use of state revenue bonds to provide $200 million in funds for the repair, rehabilitation, replacement, construction and reconstruction of bridges that are on MDOT’s structurally deficient bridge list, and other transportation-related projects.

For more information about these MDOT construction projects, visit www.MDOTtraffic.com and like and follow @MississippiDOT on Facebook and Twitter.