Completion of Sunshine Street bridge work delayed to end of December

Businesses impacted by bridge work on West Sunshine Street will have to wait a bit longer than expected, as the completion timeline has been pushed back.

Regan Mitchell, senior communications specialist for the Missouri Department of Transportation's southwest district, said via email that bridge work is now slated for completion by year's end. The 62-year-old bridge, which carries Sunshine Street over Missouri & Northern Arkansas Railroad tracks, just east of Scenic Avenue, closed Aug. 4 for replacement work that was slated to take four months. That previous projection would have put the completion in early December.

"Due to construction and weather delays, the bridge is slightly behind schedule," Mitchell said. "However, the contractor is working six days per week to gain time back."

The project’s general contractor is Hartman & Co. Inc. and the estimated cost is $5.9 million, according to past Springfield Business Journal reporting. The existing bridge was built in 1963, and carried more than 26,000 vehicles a day, according to MoDOT.   

Metro Eats, an 11-acre west Springfield development, which includes a food truck park, bar, event space and a food hall, is among businesses previously identified as facing disruptions due to the bridge work, according to past reporting.