The Mexia Overpass

The Mexia Overpass- Since 1937

Out with the old, in with the new

By KIM WALPOLE Staff Reporter

The Mexia Overpass (U.S. Highway 84), a major traffic area through the city and known as Milam Street by many. It was originally built in 1937 and according to a study by the Texas Department of Transportation is in need of a major overhaul.

It is currently scheduled for total replacement with a tentative start date for bids in August 2008. The estimated cost of the complete renovation is $5,926,000, with the actual construction project slated to start sometime before the end of the year. The time frame for completion is approximately 18 months, depending on the weather conditions.

Funds for the project come from the Highway Bridge Replacement and Rehabilitation Program, which is 20% State funded and 80% Federally funded.

An inspection held in January 2007 found that the bridge is still in adequate condition and safe for normal traffic but has been rated as “structurally deficient” which means it does not meet the current safety standards for width and load capacity given the current daily average traffic count.

The old overpass will be replaced with a wider concrete and steel bridge that meets current roadway safety and design specifications. Those specifications include four 12’ wide travel lanes with a median and sidewalks in both directions. The project will also upgrade the approaches to the bridge as well. The new bridge will be approximately the same height and at the same location.

During the 18 months of construction, traffic is not to be detoured, but will be restricted to one lane in each direction.

U.S. Highway 84 started as a short Georgia-Alabama route in the original 1926 scheme, but now extends all the way to Colorado. The section from Brunswick, Georgia to Roscoe, Texas has been designated by five state legislatures as part of the El Camino East/West Corridor. The designation was in recognition of its history as a migration route from the Atlantic coast to the present U.S. Mexico border, one of the routes that Spanish settlers called El Camino Real. The western endpoint of U.S. 84, Pagosa Springs, Colorado, was made famous by C.W. McCall in the 1975 song, Wolf Creek Pass.