Work Begins On New St. Croix Bridge Project

STILLWATER, Minn. (AP) — Work has begun on the new St. Croix bridge project to connect Minnesota and Wisconsin.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation said Monday that crews have built a construction staging area on the Minnesota banks of the St. Croix River.

Current work includes building dock walls to support equipment access for construction of bridge foundations. Crews also are installing steel sheet panels to provide docking facilities for barges.

Workers are scheduled in early May to prepare land for the site adjacent to Minnesota Highway 95 in Oak Park Heights.

The project includes building a new four-lane highway bridge across the river connecting expressways on both sides. Construction of the bridge superstructure is scheduled to start in 2014.

The project will replace the 80-year-old Stillwater Lift Bridge.

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