“Clock is ticking” says Sen. Pfaff on Lansing bridge repairs that were said to take a month

The bridge linking Wisconsin and Iowa at Lansing could be open again within 30 days.

That word comes from La Crosse State Senator Brad Pfaff, who has spoken with transportation officials from the two states about repairs to the Black Hawk bridge, which has been closed for a month.

Some structural movement was reported on the old bridge in February, apparently related to construction of a new bridge nearby.

Pfaff said he’ll be at a Thursday meeting with the Wisconsin DOT to get an update from the Iowa DOT, which is the lead on the repairs, on how the repairs are going.

“I’ve been told, a couple weeks ago, that within 30 days, this would be resolved,” PFaff said Monday on La Crosse Talk PM. “Well, the clock is ticking.”

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La Crosse Talk PM airs weekdays at 5:06 p.m. Listen on the WIZM app, online here, or on 92.3 FM / 1410 AM / 106.7 FM (north of Onalaska). Find all the podcasts here or subscribe to La Crosse Talk PM wherever you get your podcasts.

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Pfaff, who represents the De Soto area on the east end of the bridge, noted the shutdown of that bridge due to structural problems causes an inconvenience to many drivers in the region.

“You live in Ferryville, or you live in Genoa, you have to drive all the way up to La Crosse here, the Cass Street bridge, or you have to drive all the way to Prairie du Chien in order to cross into Iowa,” Pfaff said, “and it has impacted people. And it impacts the business community, as well.”

A ferry boat service has been started near the bridge to avoid the long highway detours.