The Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) and Stillwater County have scheduled an open house and presentation to discuss the plan to replace the bridge over the Stillwater River about 2 miles northwest of Absarokee. The bridge is located on Local Route 48249, also known as Johnson Bridge Road.

The meeting will be held in Absarokee on Thursday, May 10, from 4 - 7 p.m. in the Great Room at the Cobblestone School Community Center located at 203 S. Woodard Ave. The presentation will start at 6 p.m. Project team members will be available during the meeting to update the public on the bridge plan as well as to describe how the public’s initial feedback was incorporated into the project.

The plan to replace the bridge includes removing the existing truss bridge and building a new truss bridge at the same location. Adjustments to the vertical alignment will improve sight distance at the bridge approaches. The existing bridge will be closed during construction. All traffic will be detoured to alternate routes.

The purpose of this project is to enhance safety by replacing the structurally deficient truss structure with a new truss bridge that meets the needs of the county and the community. As a part of this project, the Garrigus Ditch structure north of the bridge will be replaced with a box culvert and the 90-degree curve north of the bridge and ditch will be realigned to better accommodate truck traffic.

The project is tentatively scheduled for construction in 2020, depending on completion of all project development activities and availability of funding. New right-of-way and relocation of utilities may be required. MDT staff will contact all affected landowners prior to doing performing work on their land. 

For more information, please contact Billings District Administrator Stefan Streeter at (406) 657-0268 or Project Design Engineer Jeff Olsen at (406) 444 7610. Members of the public may submit written comments to the Montana Department of Transportation Billings office at P.O. Box 20437, Billings, MT  59104-0437, or online at:
 
www.mdt.mt.gov\mdt\comment_form.shtml

Please note that your comments are for project UPN 8670000. Alternative accessible formats of this information will be provided upon request by contacting Alice Flesch, Human Resources and Occupational Safety Division, P.O. Box 201001, Helena, MT 59620; (406) 444-9229; TTY (800) 335-7592; fax (406) 444-7243; or e-mail to aflesch@mt.gov.