The new bridge's main span is supported by 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of 0.6-inch-diameter (1.5 cm) stay-cable strand, enough for nearly two round trips from St. Louis to Chicago.

The Poplar Street Bridge, the busiest in the area, has had volume reduced by 20,000 cars per day, a 19% decrease.

[18] After receiving the federal grant, Illinois pushed to start as soon as possible, but Missouri said it had more pressing highway projects to work on.

This proved low; a $229.5 million contract was awarded on December 30, 2009, to a joint venture of Massman Construction Co. of Kansas City, Traylor Bros. Inc. of Indiana and St. Louis-based Alberici Corp. (The team beat out the $274.9 million bid by a joint venture of American Bridge Co. and Dragados USA.

[needs update] Subsurface exploration by engineering firm Modjeski and Masters showed thick deposits of low-density sand below the water table.

Several ways to reduce the risk were considered, including in-situ densification of the sands,[20] but ultimately the foundations were changed to feature 12-foot-diameter (3.7 m), 120-foot-long (37 m) drilled piers founded in the limestone bedrock to support the bridge superstructure.

[21][needs update] In August 2011, community leaders in East St. Louis, which suffers high unemployment, lodged complaints with the Illinois Department of Transportation that the bridge labor force included too few minority workers.

The project meets these requirements, according to contractor records; the activists argued that the labor force was not representative of those living in the region.

Though the company continued its contract to provide concrete for the bridge, it no longer counted as a minority-owned firm.

[24] At 10:30 a.m. on March 28, 2012, carpenter Andy Gammon plunged to his death in the river when a barge-mounted lift toppled and a rescue effort failed.

[26] The naming proposal was supported by Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL) and Illinois Governor Pat Quinn.

Perkins and Reiki, joined by fellow VFW member Dave Stout, collected signatures again and in 2009 tuned over to Rep. Costello petitions with more than 13,000 names.

[citation needed] On August 28, 2005, the Missouri State Legislature voted to name the bridge after President Ronald Reagan.

[27] In March 2011, the Missouri House of Representatives approved a proposal to change the name to "Jerry F. Costello–William Lacy 'Bill' Clay Sr. Veterans Memorial Bridge", for two prominent state politicians.

[29] On January 22, 2013, Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Glendale, Missouri) introduced a bill to name the bridge after Stan Musial, the former St. Louis Cardinals baseball player who had recently died.