MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - A U.S. Senator from Tennessee is calling on President Joe Biden to take an "urgent, all-hands" approach to the shutdown of a bridge that connects Tennessee and Arkansas.
Republican Sen. Bill Hagerty said Saturday in a letter to the president that the shutdown is "affecting the lives and livelihoods of real people right now." Hagerty said the fix to the Interstate 40 bridge should not wait for a proposed infrastructure bill being debated in Washington.
River traffic reopened on the Mississippi River on Friday, three days after it was closed when a crack was discovered in the bridge. The span will remain closed to vehicles indefinitely, and road traffic is being rerouted.
Hagerty said he has spoken with U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and "conveyed the urgency of the matter."
Democrats have said the shutdown highlights the urgent need for more infrastructure funding.