Contractors are building a unique bridge as part of an extension of Bettendorf’s 53rd Avenue. The four-lane 172-foot structure is the first bridge built in Iowa to have an all-fiber-reinforced deck and the first in the world to combine the all-fiber deck with concrete beams. The top layer of the bridge’s center span is reinforced with fiberglass, not steel rods. Transportation officials hope the materials hold up better than concrete and steel to Iowa winters and to the use of various chemicals to combat snow and ice.
