Officials from the Iowa Department of Transportation, Iowa City and the University of Iowa are receiving federal assistance for a $57 million project to replace the two one-way Burlington Street bridges with a single span connecting downtown and the university, along with improvements to adjacent streets.
More than $23 million from a U.S. Department of Transportation Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grant will fund construction of a multi-lane, multimodal bridge over the Iowa River and improvements to intersections and roadways along Burlington Street (Highway 1), Riverside Avenue, Grand Avenue, Byington Avenue and Melrose Avenue. The project is expected to improve safety and mobility for motorists, transit riders, bicyclists and pedestrians.
The Burlington Street crossing currently consists of two separately owned bridges. Iowa DOT maintains the westbound bridge, while the city owns and maintains the eastbound bridge. Although the eastbound bridge underwent rehabilitation in 1986, it is more than 100 years old and was rated structurally deficient during the city’s 2021 inspection. Once the replacement bridge is complete, Iowa DOT will assume ownership and maintenance. The crossing carries about 18,900 vehicles each day and is one of five arterial bridges spanning the Iowa River in Iowa City.
The project has been in development for several years. In 2022, Iowa City received a $300,000 Bridge Investment Program planning grant that funded studies leading to the replacement project. The BUILD grant, announced July 7, provides nearly half of the project’s estimated cost.
In addition to replacing the bridges, the project includes separated bicycle facilities, grade-separated pedestrian crossings, intersection improvements designed to improve traffic flow and the conversion of Grand Avenue, Byington Avenue and Melrose Avenue to two-way traffic. Construction also will require demolition of the University of Iowa’s Latino Native American Cultural Center building. University officials have said the center will be relocated before construction begins, while the nearby African American Cultural Center will remain in place.
Final design is expected between spring 2027 and fall 2028. Officials anticipate seeking construction bids in fall 2028, with work beginning in spring 2029 and continuing over multiple construction seasons.
Early planning for the project also examined potential improvements to the Burlington Street Dam immediately downstream of the bridge. However, dam modifications are not included in the BUILD-funded project. Future concepts have included safety improvements, expanded recreational opportunities and measures to improve fish passage and aquatic habitat.
Photo by Loco Steve, CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0, from Wikimedia Commons
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