Senators Demand Funding Release for $1.8B Blatnik Bridge Replacement

The bridge, which dates to the early Nineteen Sixties, carries Interstate 535 and serves a mean of 33,000 autos a day touring over St. Louis Bay. It’s important for freight motion and industrial visitors serving the Twin Ports of Duluth and Superior however has fallen into poor situation with important structural deterioration, creating critical capability, mobility and security issues, the letter says.

“The oldsters in Minnesota and Wisconsin who’re planning the reconstruction of the Blatnik Bridge have dotted their I’s and crossed their T’s. Now it’s time the president and Secretary Duffy give the ultimate inexperienced mild for this venture to maneuver ahead so we are able to maintain Wisconsinites protected and help the native financial system,” Baldwin stated.

The Minnesota Dept. of Transportation and the Wisconsin Dept. of Transportation, which collectively personal the bridge, obtained the dedication for federal funding in 2024 via the Infrastructure Funding and Jobs Act. The state businesses plan to separate the remaining prices and have every put aside $400 million for the venture. They submitted an amended grant settlement to USDOT in October 2025.

If federal funding continues to be withheld, the venture’s value—which incorporates changing the the bridge’s structural parts and restoring it to its authentic operational situation—will rise considerably, in line with transportation businesses. 

“If the grant modification shouldn’t be signed quickly and development of the brand new bridge is delayed, it will trigger a big enhance in value and a significant shift in schedule. Inflation alone is estimated at $80 million per 12 months for the venture,” the businesses stated.

In November 2025, the transportation businesses named a short list of contractors for the venture:  Ames Kramer Joint Enterprise II and Lunda Building Firm. A contractor is slated to be chosen on June 23, 2026.

The plea for the discharge of federal funds by lawmakers is changing into acquainted because the Trump administration withholds billions of {dollars} from main infrastructure initiatives, principally in Democratic-led states and cities.

Affected initiatives embody the $2.1-billion Chicago Transit Authority (CTA)  Pink Line extension, the $1.2-billion Great Lakes Asian Carp Barrier Project in Illinois, and the $16-billion Hudson Tunnel Challenge (Gateway Program) in New York/New Jersey.

U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-WI) stated in an announcement that he expects the federal funds to return via, however didn’t predict when.

“The Blatnik Bridge reconstruction has bipartisan help from the Wisconsin and Minnesota delegations, and I’m assured the Trump administration will get this vital venture accomplished. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy understands how important this bridge is to the Twin Ports and can work to make sure its alternative will get carried out,” he stated. 

If it isn’t changed, the bridge is deliberate to shut completely by 2030, state officers stated.