The Bob Michel Bridge (formerly called Franklin Street Bridge) carries

Illinois Route 40 Illinois Route 40 (IL 40) is a north–south route in central portion of the U.S. state of Illinois. It runs from Interstate 74 (I-74) in East Peoria north to IL 78 at Mt. Carroll, just south of U.S. Route 52 (US 52) and IL 64. Route de ...

over the Illinois River 0.75 miles (1.21 km) up-river from the Cedar Street Bridge. Illinois 40 terminates at an interchange with

Interstate 74 } Interstate 74 (I-74) is an Interstate Highway in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. Its western end is at an interchange with I-80 in Davenport, Iowa (Quad Cities); the eastern end of its Midwest segment is at an interchange ...

just east of the bridge. The bridge serves as a direct surface route from a major commercial center in East Peoria to the Civic Center in downtown Peoria. When completed in 1993, the Bob Michel Bridge replaced the antiquated Franklin Street Bridge, a bascule and

truss bridge A truss bridge is a bridge whose load-bearing superstructure is composed of a truss, a structure of connected elements, usually forming triangular units. The connected elements (typically straight) may be stressed from tension, compression, or ...

, which had been located on an adjacent site since 1913. The Bob Michel Bridge is the only river crossing in the Peoria area to accommodate pedestrians and cyclists. Prior to the development of the area as a commercial center, the Michel Bridge served a largely industrial area in East Peoria, including many buildings owned by nearby

Caterpillar, Inc. Caterpillar Inc. (stock symbol CAT) is an American ''Fortune'' 500 corporation and the world's largest construction-equipment manufacturer. In 2018, Caterpillar was ranked number 65 on the ''Fortune'' 500 list and number 238 on the Global ''Fo ...

The bridge was located at the end of an exit named "Industrial Spur". It has since been renamed to "Riverfront Drive" to account for the new commercial complex. The Bob Michel Bridge is named after former Congressman

Robert H. Michel Robert Henry Michel (; March 2, 1923 – February 17, 2017) was an American Republican Party politician who was a member of the United States House of Representatives for 38 years. He represented central Illinois' 18th congressional distric ...

, a Peoria-area

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

who served as a Congressman from 1957 to 1995 and as House Minority Leader from 1981 until his retirement. The bridge is located at mile 162.3 of the Illinois River.

References

Bridges over the Illinois River Bridges completed in 1993 Buildings and structures in Peoria, Illinois East Peoria, Illinois Bridges in Tazewell County, Illinois Steel bridges in the United States Girder bridges in the United States Road bridges in Illinois Bridges in Peoria County, Illinois 1993 establishments in Illinois {{Illinois-bridge-struct-stub