A project that will remove the last single-track bottleneck on the Union Pacific rail line between Jefferson City and St. Louis was approved last week by the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission.
They awarded a contract for a new railroad bridge over the Osage River to OCCI Inc., a Fulton-based construction company. When completed, the new bridge will significantly improve freight and passenger rail service.
The Osage River bridge is the first major rail infrastructure project to be awarded in Missouri under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
The project, estimated at $20 million, will construct a second railroad bridge over the Osage River, adjacent to the existing Union Pacific bridge at Osage City. It also includes a new second mainline track on both sides of the new bridge, totaling about a half mile. The new track will connect to the existing line, providing approximately 130 miles of double track from Jefferson City to St. Louis.