McKinley Bridge

The bridge was named for its builder, William B. McKinley, chief executive of the Illinois Traction System interurban electric railway, which accessed St. Louis via the bridge; and not for President William McKinley. The current alignment of the bridge carries two lanes of traffic on the inner lanes. The outer lane on the north side of the bridge will become an exclusive service lane, while the outer lane on the south side of the bridge will become a sidewalk and bike path. It is expected to carry 14,000 vehicles across the river daily, but total traffic across the river increased in 2014 by 7.4% over 2013 levels, and in April 2014, it was estimated that 17,000 vehicles use it daily. The bridge is accessible from Illinois Route 3 in Illinois, and from the intersection of Salisbury and North 9th Street in the city of St. Louis. == History ==

Construction and early history The bridge was built by the Illinois Traction electric interurban railroad to cross the Mississippi River between St. Louis, Missouri and East St. Louis, Illinois in 1910. Its designer was Polish-American engineer Ralph Modjeski. It was constructed by Missouri Valley Bridge & Iron Co. and Pennsylvania Steel Co. The bridge was owned by the city of Venice, Illinois and operated as a toll bridge. When the U.S. Highway System was instituted in 1926, the McKinley Bridge then carried auto traffic on the famous Route 66 across the Mississippi River for four years, until the route was transferred to the Chain of Rocks Bridge to avoid downtown St. Louis. The bridge carried both railroad and vehicular traffic across the Mississippi River for decades. By 1978, the railroad line over the span was closed, and an additional set of lanes was opened for vehicles in the inner roadway. Rehabilitation After decades of disrepair due to the lack of toll revenues, the McKinley Bridge was closed in 2001. The state of Illinois attempted to provide money to the city of Venice for repairing the bridge, but was unable to do so because of the outstanding taxes owed by the city. As a result, the City of St. Louis foreclosed on the bridge, delaying reconstruction efforts further. In an agreement reached in June 2003, the states of Illinois and Missouri agreed to take over ownership of the bridge from the city of Venice. Rehabilitation began in 2004 and the original plans for the repairs anticipated a re-opening in late 2005. with a grand re-opening celebration. It was fully reopened to vehicular traffic on December 17, 2007. == See also ==