Marquette-Joliet Bridge

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**Marquette-Joliet Bridge**
Carries	2 lanes of U.S. Route 18
Crosses	Mississippi River
Locale	Marquette, Iowa and Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin
Design	Arch bridge
Total length	780 meters (2,560 feet)
Clearance below	18 meters (60 feet)
Opening date	June 1975
Coordinates	43°02′38″N, 91°10′33″W

The Marquette-Joliet Bridge crosses the Mississippi River, joining Marquette, Iowa, with Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin: locals do not use this term; rather it's the "Prairie Bridge" or the "Marquette Bridge" (local usage is about equal). It is an automobile bridge which traverses the Mississippi River; it's about three-lanes wide, and is designed to accept Jersey barriers for deck service. It is between the Black Hawk Bridge, about 40 miles upstream, and the Dubuque-Wisconsin Bridge some 60 miles south. The bridge is a rather normal bridge, similar to an expressway setup. It carries U.S. Route 18.

It famously cracked in the winter after its opening, and had to be closed and repaired. In more recent times, the approach on the Iowa side of the bridge was rebuilt as part of the U.S. 18 bypass that was built around Marquette and McGregor, Iowa.