Plan on a little extra time to get where you're going if you use the Murdoch Avenue Bridge in Webster Groves or travel in areas around it.

Beginning Monday, April 23, the bridge over the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad between Interstate 44 and Big Bend Boulevard will close. The closure also includes the ramp onto westbound I-44 from Murdoch Avenue.

The bridge is being replaced because it is functionally obsolete and structurally deficient, Webster Groves officials say. However, it is not dangerous.

Kozeny Wagner, the contractor, has 180 days to complete the project. The maps in the attached .pdf file show current traffic patterns and detour routes. 

The closure has been postponed a couple of times. Originally, it was to take place in January. However, the contractor was still in the process of getting drawings and demolition plans approved by MoDOT and the Burlington Northern Sante Fe Railroad.

The closure was rescheduled for mid-March. However, the project's contractors and representatives from the Burlington Northern Sante Fe Railroad were still in negotiations over how long it would take to demolish the bridge.