History of the Bridge
 The Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge is named for the eight-term Southeast Missouri congressman who helped lead efforts to secure funding for
its construction. Mr. Emerson worked hard to secure Federal Highway Administration money to proceed with the construction. Mr. Emerson
passed away in June 1996 shortly before the contract to build the bridge was awarded.
Mr. Emerson's House and Senate colleagues unanimously passed legislation three days after his death to name the new bridge in his
honor. President Clinton later signed the legislation.
The Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge is anticipated for completion in 2003. The estimated cost of the bridge is $100 million. Eighty percent
of the funding comes from the federal government. Missouri and Illinois each contribute 10 percent. The structure will be a 100-foot wide,
4,000-foot long cable stay bridge. It will link Cape Girardeau, Mo., and East Cape Girardeau, Ill., and span the Mississippi
River. The Emerson Bridge will be illuminated at night by 140 lights.
A new structure is needed to safely and efficiently accommodate the many motorists who use the current Mississippi River Bridge each
day. Traffic on the structure is continually increasing and future projections indicate this trend will continue. Currently, 14,000
vehicles utilize the structure daily and by the year 2015, the volume is expected to increase to 26,000 vehicles per day.
The Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge will serve our area as an important part of our transportation system and as a beautiful landmark for many
years to come. It is a deserving tribute that the bridge can be named in honor of a person who worked so hard for it to be built.
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Fun Facts About The Bill Emerson Memorial Bridge For Kids
The new Emerson Bridge being built in Cape Girardeau is a huge project for the entire state. Each day, it will serve thousands of
people. To help those cars, trucks and motorcycles safely cross the Mississippi River, a lot of things are used to build the bridge.
 MoDOT is using 13 million pounds of reinforcing steel to build the bridge. That is equal to the weight of 1,300 elephants. The steel
makes the bridge strong to hold all the vehicles.
 The cables used in the bridge would stretch for 171 miles. If you lined skateboards up for 171 miles it would take 361,152
skateboards. The cables hold the bridge up out of the water.
 The 243,688,500 pounds of concrete used to build the bridge is equal to the weight of 902,550 professional wrestlers. The concrete is
smoothed flat and provides a surface for the cars to drive on.
 The overall weight of the bridge is 266 million pounds. That is equal to the weight of 304 jets.
 The beams used to build the bridge weigh 15 million pounds. That is 3,157,894 gallons of ice cream! The beams are located under the
road and also make the bridge strong.
 The bridge will be 100 feet wide. It would take 85 large pizzas lined up next to each other to stretch across the new bridge. The
bridge will have two driving lanes going into Illinois and two lanes leading to Missouri. Plus, it will have a lot of extra space between
the road and the edge of the bridge. This space is good in case cars break down and need to pull over.
 The Emerson Bridge will be 4,000 feet long and will connect Cape Girardeau, Mo., with East Cape Girardeau, Ill. That is equal to the
length of 13 football fields.
 If you stacked soccer balls on top of each other, it would take 540 soccer balls to be as tall as the tallest point on the bridge. The
highway will be 60 feet from the water and the bridge towers that hold up the support cables will be another 300 feet tall.
 Currently, 14,000 cars go over the bridge each day. If you lined up 14,000 VW Bugs, they would stretch for more than 31 miles. This
is almost the same as the distance between Cape Girardeau, Mo., and Perryville, Mo. By the year 2015, 26,000 cars will use the bridge. That
would be nearly 60 miles of cars or the distance between Cape Girardeau and Ste. Genevieve, Mo.
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Photo Gallery
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