Project completion for the bridge replacement over Long Creek on Hwy. 51 between Batesville and Pope is scheduled for winter of 2022, and motorists are urged to use extra caution and be mindful of the increased risk of traffic accidents in the work zone.

Talbot Brothers, Inc., was awarded a $6.7 million contract to replace the bridge and build a new alignment next to the existing roadway, just east of the state highway.

So far, the contractor has completed driving piles and pouring caps at the site. Some beams that will make up the structure of the new bridge have been set, and more will be added as shipments arrive.

Most of the dirt work for the new portion of the highway has been finished, and workers are now in the process of planting temporary grass. Forming and paving of the new alignment to meet the replaced bridge will resume after the threat of winter weather has passed.

There have been some reported accidents in the workzone, but so far there have been few serious wrecks.

Commissioner John Caldwell, Northern Transportation District, said,  “As the WORK AHEAD signs and orange barrels go up and down, motorists should start experiencing the benefit of these important projects,” said Caldwell. “Please slow down and be mindful of our workers and contractors. From the smallest repairs to the largest construction project, we are steadily working to make things better.”

Other MDOT repairs projects in the area include the continuation of a $52.5 million project to replace four bridges over Hickala Creek in Tate County, and the recent opening of a roundabout ($1.7 million) at the intersection of Hwy. 9W and 7 in Lafayette County.