Bridge Commission posts profit in 2010

Published 12:04 pm Thursday, September 9, 2010

Operations of the U.S. 80 bridge over the Mississippi River turned a profit of more than $1 million in 2010 after posting a loss of more than half a million dollars a year earlier.

An independent audit by The Halford Firm showed net assets of $539,253 as of June 30, when the yearlong audit of the Vicksburg Bridge Commission ended.

In 2009, the board’s ledger dipped to $568,268 in the red. Bridge and company officials said finances bounced back due to fewer bridge repairs and added revenue from a lease with AT&T on fiber-optic lines that cross the county-owned bridge’s right of way.

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Overall, revenues stood at $1,275,060, while spending equaled $735,807.

Rail tolls were down about 2 percent, to $1,031,829, a flatter decrease than in 2009, when the per-car fees paid by Kansas City Southern Railway dropped 13 percent. Traffic on the rail route across the bridge totaled 266,821 cars during the audit period, down about 5 percent compared to last year.

Work began in July to repair cracks and re-anchor beams above pier 5. A $637,754 offer went to Shreveport-based Shiloh Contractors Inc. to complete the job.

Another project to shore up the soils on the east bank is estimated to cost $800,000, but is tied up in talks with Gulf South Pipeline to move a pair of natural gas lines away from the work area.