I-74 Bridge
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Originally known as the Iowa-Illinois Memorial Bridge, today it is more commonly referred to as the I-74 Bridge. The bridge crosses the Mississippi River and connects Bettendorf, Iowa and Moline, Illinois. It is located near the geographic center of the Quad Cities. It is the only traditional suspension bridge across the Mississippi River. Visitors to the Quad Cities can invariably expect delays on this bridge which seems to be in a perpetual state of construction.
The first span opened in 1935. In 1959 an identical twin span was added to satisfy increased traffic. The twin spans were upgraded to carry interstate traffic in the mid-1970's. In 2005, an average of 65,800 vehicles crossed the I-74 bridge daily. This compares with 22,100 vehicles at the I-280 Bridge, 25,500 vehicles at the Government Bridge, and 26,000 vehicles at the Fred Schwengel Memorial Bridge, which carries Interstate 80 [link]. Both the Interstate 80 and 280 bridges are up to Interstate standard, while the Interstate 74 bridge has two narrow lanes, no shoulder, and a 50 mile-per-hour (80 km/h) speed limit.
The [I-74 Corridor Study] is underway to study replacing the bridge with a larger one with 3 lanes in each direction.
See also
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