I-70 Blanchette Bridge Rehabilitation

Location

Blanchette Memorial Bridge, Maryland Heights, MO, USA

Project Size

1,000,000

Completed Date

2021

Prime Contractor

KCI Construction Company

Client

MODOT

Value

$15,850,000

About Project

Named after St. Charles founder Louis Blanchette, the Blanchette Bridge is a 4,083-foot structure spanning the Missouri River. Originally built in 1958, the twin cantilever bridge is a leading travel corridor connecting St. Charles and St. Louis counties.

In 2020, Thomas Industrial Coatings (TIC) provided painting services to renovate the eastbound bridge. The scope of work included installing 302,400 SF of suspended work platform spanning the entire length of the project. The bents and piers of the bridge were brush blasted to remove the existing coating from each location, and 236 gallons of the new coating were applied to these locations.

Clearance gauges on the upstream side of the bridge were brush blasted, and a new chlorinated rubber coating was applied before the stencil application. All existing approach plate girders, fascia plate girders, and truss spans were abrasive blasted to an SP10 near the white blast. 7,400 gallons of primer coat and 4,300 gallons of topcoat were used during coating application.

During the project, 980,000 square feet of steel was accessed, contained, prepped, and coated. Special surface treatment included work on the lower hangers, lower splices, and truss members of the bridge. TIC used hand and power tools (SP2 & SP3) to remove pack rust at 208 locations of the bridge, totaling 32,100 square feet.

Lateral bracing shelves, stiffener connections, and floor beams were prepped and coated after steel modifications.

Aerial View

Drone View

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