HEI was selected as part of a project team by the IDOT - District 6 to provide Phase II engineering design services for the replacement of the structure carrying U.S. Highway 67 over the Illinois River at Beardstown. U.S. Highway 67 is a Class II truck route and classified as an other Principal Arterial with an ADT of 5,900.

The existing structure is a combination of a steel continuous thru truss over the Illinois River and steel plate girder spans over Curry Lake and the main river span approaches. The existing structure is 3,624-ft in length and only 28 feet in width. The longest span of the thru truss over the Illinois River is 540-ft. The existing structure is showing significant distress in the superstructure elements, especially in the continuous thru truss. The narrow overall bridge width creates significant delays when wide loads and farm equipment shut down the bridge so they may pass over the river.



HEI was tasked with designing the western approach spans over Curry Lake and up to the main river spans. Our portion of the design includes 2,044-ft of 82-inch continuous steel plate girder superstructure with a reinforced concrete deck and parapets. Our design also includes ten reinforced concrete drilled shaft piers ranging in height from 116-ft to 156-ft from top of rock to bridge deck. Each pier consists of four drilled shafts and concrete columns at 4.5-ft in diameter. This design also included a complete multi-modal seismic analysis and significant analysis for wind loading during construction.