New I-74 Bridge trail has a southern neighbor

This leads to a path that crosses the Mississippi River in Keokuk, Iowa. 
It runs along the Keokuk & Hamilton Bridge.

    Many of us in the Quad-Cities are excited that the new bike path and pedestrian trial on the I-74 bridge is to open in the next few months.

    According to I-74 Corridor Manager George Ryan, the opening of the path connected to the Illinois-bound span will come after a few bells and whistles are added. These include seating, decorative sculptures and lights below the circular oculus in the middle of the path, Ryan said in a Quad-City Times story written April 5, by Barb Ickes.

    The new path is a modern version of pedestrian trails that now cross the Mississippi River. Another one is the Keokuk & Hamilton Bridge, which runs from Keokuk, Iowa to Hamilton, Illinois.

    I caught a look at this path while spending a recent night in Keokuk.

    Fun fact: Ralph Modjeski was the original engineer of the Keokuk bridge, as well as for the Government Bridge which runs between Davenport and Rock Island in the Quad-Cities. 

    These two bridges are among three in Iowa designed by one of America's leading bridge engineers, the Library of Congress reported (https://www.loc.gov/item/ia0124/). Industrialist Andrew Carnegie also was involved in the Keokuk bridge: He was president of the railroad which participated in the early 1900s venture.

   The Keokuk & Hamilton bridge is a steel-girder, 4-lane bridge. It carries U.S. Route 136 across the Mississippi River. It also has a full fenced-off pedestrian walkway, according to the Library of Congress.

    The bridge has been greatly impacted by flooding along the Mississippi, in 1993, 2008 and more. A full recounting can be found in an article on Wikipedia, online: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keokuk–Hamilton_Bridge

     The new I-74 bridge is a necessary, fascinating project in the Quad-Cities. It is the largest construction project in Iowa history, for example, and it opened to the public in December, 2021. 

    I blogged a "Top 10" list of impressions of the bridge during its public opening on Dec. 1: https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/5852259128369796/9217818222147507879?hl=en

    I will be sure to walk along the new bike path/pedestrian trail when it finally opens.


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