Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said Monday they had requested federal funding to rebuild the John A. Blatnik Bridge between Duluth, Minn. and Superior, Wis.
The governors said they had requested their respective departments of transportation to request more than $1 billion from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bridge Investment Program to fund the $1.8 billion project to improve safety on the bridge and to rehabilitate it to accommodate oversize and overweight loads. Each state has committed $400 million toward the project this year with both states hoping federal funding will help them replace the 60 year old bridge.
“The Blatnik Bridge is a critical connection point for transportation and commerce between Minnesota and Wisconsin – and it needs an upgrade,” Walz said. “I’m proud to partner with Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers as we urge our federal partners to support this project that will foster regional economic growth, bolster our national supply chains, and strengthen the reliability of our transportation network that serves hundreds of communities between our states.”
Earlier this year, the two governors applied for a more than $1 billion federal grant through the U.S. DOT’s Multimodal Project Discretionary Grant program. Both grant programs are part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
“For more than 60 years, the Blatnik Bridge has been a vital link for our communities and businesses. But as the bridge reaches the end of its service life, its condition continues to deteriorate—and it’s time for us to exhaust every opportunity to replace this crucial connector with a safer, more efficient, and more reliable structure for the next generation,” Evers said. “This submittal is a major step forward for our two states, and I look forward to continuing to work with Gov. Walz and our partners in Minnesota and our federal partners to build the 21st-century infrastructure the people of our states deserve.”