Gov. Parson promises to build new Buck O’Neil Bridge in State of State speech

Missouri Gov. Mike Parson vowed in his State of the State speech Wednesday to build a new Buck O’Neil Bridge.

Parson was light on details of how the state would fund the project. But his transportation director, Patrick McKenna, told The Star after the speech that $60 million was available from the state bonding program aimed at repairing 250 crumbling bridges around the state.

McKenna said that money, coupled with $150 million in other state and local resources already allocated, will fully fund the $200 million project.

“The governor’s program was the final piece to that puzzle,” he said.

Finished in 1956, the Buck O’Neil Bridge is the main route to the airport along US-169, carrying tens of thousands of commuters each year. While the bridge has undergone repairs, it is considered to be at the end of its lifespan.

McKenna said construction on the new bridge won’t begin “for a minimum two construction seasons.”

“We’ll be building them next to the current bridge,” he said, “so we’re getting the final useful life out of the old structure.”

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas, who attended the speech and was name checked by the governor when he announced his promise, said he wasn’t surprised because the two have talked about it over the last few months.

But he did not know it would be included in the state of the state address.

“I don’t think I had any idea it was coming,” he said. “It was a pleasant surprise, but frankly its a result of years of work not just by Kansas City but other cities in our delegation to make sure this happened.”

The Star’s Jason Hancock contributed to this story.

This story was originally published January 15, 2020 at 4:13 PM.