News

MetroLink Resumes Normal Operation on the Eads Bridge

The MetroLink tracks on the south side of the historic Eads Bridge are now back in service and MetroLink trains are once again operating on both the eastbound and westbound tracks across the Mississippi River. The eastbound tracks on the south side of the bridge were closed in late 2014 to accommodate the Eads Bridge Rehabilitation project, and both eastbound and westbound MetroLink trains shared the same tracks on the north side of the Eads Bridge during the closure.

The Eads Bridge Rehabilitation Project is the first comprehensive, full-scale rehabilitation of the 142-year-old Eads Bridge. The project will extend the life of the bridge for another 50 years through rehabilitating and restoring the steel truss and superstructure. In addition, the structural flooring system for MetroLink has been completely replaced on the Eads Bridge with new rails and ties, and messenger and contact wire that are used to power the trains have been upgraded to new overhead conductor rail, which helps improve the light rail system’s efficiency and reliability. During the four-year-long project, eastbound and westbound MetroLink trains shared one set of tracks to cross the Eads Bridge, with virtually no delays for passengers. Metro worked very hard to keep the impact of the rehabilitation work to a minimum on riders. Current MetroLink schedules will not be affected by the reopening of the eastbound tracks. 

The Eads Bridge Rehabilitation Project is expected to be finished later this summer. The public will be invited to a special completion event.  

About Metro

Metro is the operator of the St. Louis region’s public transportation system, which includes the 87 vehicle, 46-mile MetroLink light rail system; 399 MetroBus vehicle fleet that operates on 78 MetroBus routes in Missouri and Illinois; and Metro Call‑A‑Ride, a paratransit fleet of 122 vans. Metro is an enterprise of Bi-State Development (BSD), which also owns and operates St. Louis Downtown Airport and its surrounding industrial business park; the Gateway Arch Riverboats, as well as operates the Gateway Arch Revenue Collections Center and Gateway Arch trams. BSD also operates the Bi-State Development Research Institute and the St. Louis Regional Freightway.