June 26, 2026

By Lane Kimble

POYNETTE — There’s really only one way to appreciate the size and scope of the freeway bridges being built over the Wisconsin River right now.

You need to see them from below.

“You wish you could bring everyone down here. Not only because it’s cool… but also (to show them) things don’t get built in a day,” Kraemer North America Project Manager David Burt told WTBA.

Wednesday, Burt guided WTBA’s Matt Grove and Lane Kimble along with several media members and WisDOT staff down a dirt ramp leading to a massive temporary causeway built to support machines and material on the project.

Kraemer NA is leading the efforts to build two new bridges to carry I-39/90/94 over the river near Poynette. The job also includes reconstructing more than a mile of freeway in each direction and several smaller overpasses nearby.

“People driving by only see the crane booms, they see the deck and they’re like, ‘Man, what is taking them so long?’ And then you actually come down below and you actually get to see how big the causeway is, what cranes are here, how much access work is down here, it gives you a new appreciation for how much work it actually takes to build a river crossing,” Burt said.

Work began on the $135 million project in 2024, but issues with soil composition and designs delayed progress by nearly one full construction season.

Now, Kraemer (which is not currently a WTBA member but is always welcome to join and be embraced with open arms…), approximately 30 subcontractors (which include Trierweiler Construction and Mashuda Contractors), and consulting lead HNTB are less than two months away from opening the northbound bridge to traffic.

“Bridges are in our DNA and big projects are where our specialty is. We embrace the challenge,” HNTB Project Engineer Dustin Hunt said.

The Wisconsin River’s size and fluctuations make this project especially difficult. Support shafts and footings go down anywhere from dozens of feet to more than 120 feet deep in some places.

Then there’s the huge amount of people who depend on getting across the river.

WisDOT estimates about 58,000 vehicles cross the existing 65-year-old bridges daily. That means contractors need to maintain six lanes of traffic at all times, conduct a lot of demolition work at night, and provide a solid traffic management system.

With that traffic comes risk. Wisconsin State Patrol told WMTV news there have been about 150 crashes in the work zone over the two-plus years. Thursday’s visit was WisDOT Southwest Region’s turn to draw attention to work zone safety, with five regional events planned throughout the 2026 season.

Burt says thankfully none of those involved construction workers, to which he credits a good plan developed between WisDOT, State Patrol, subcontractors, and HNTB’s supervision.

“It’s going to be a big point of pride for everyone that’s worked on this project (when it’s done), especially with all the challenges that we continue to overcome,” HNTB’s Hunt told WTBA.

Two concrete pours remain on the northbound bridge before all traffic shifts to the new pavement in August and Kraemer jumps to the southbound side. Work is on track now for a full completion in 2028.

“It’s a tall task. We’re not opposed to the challenge though,” Burt said. “It’s fun to get to see it going from no structure here about two years ago to now having a structure that’s almost ready to put traffic on it.

“It’s a cool thing.”