An independent study of whether it makes financial sense to build a toll bridge across the Mississippi River at St. Louis will be conducted. The East-West Gateway Council of Governments, which represents local governments in both Missouri and Illinois, has ordered the study. Missouri would like to use a public-private partnership to build and operate a toll bridge. The study will determine whether charging tolls would cover the $910-Million cost. Missouri officials say the state doesn’t have the money to pay its part of the bridge. Illinois has offered as an alternative; retrofitting another bridge to handle more traffic, but Missouri has resisted that plan.
