New La Plata bridge set to open Thursday Kirksville Daily Express If good weather continues, the new Route D bridge in La Plata is set to open on Thursday. After several months of construction, the Missouri Department of Transportation announced Wednesday that the bridge should open. Though the bridge will be open to motorists, there still will be intermittent closures so crews can finish earthwork and seeding. “We are happy to have this project near completion,” said Missouri Department of Transportation Area Engineer Brian Untiedt in a press release. “This new bridge is much safer for the over 2000 vehicles a day that travel this bridge, as well as the pedestrians that use it.”