VIDALIA — Preliminary work on the Mississippi River bridge lighting project began Wednesday.

Traffic on the eastbound U.S. 84 bridge was throttled to one lane so the project contractor could look at what needs to be done, Assistant to the MDOT Southern District Commissioner Janet Sullivan said.

The $3 million lighting project is a joint effort between MDOT, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development and the City of Vidalia

The contract for the work was awarded to Infra Source Underground of Illinois in late May.

The project will light both the roadway and the structure of the bridge, making it fully visible at night.

MDOT District Seven District Engineer Darrell Broome said the expected completion date for the project is April 2010.

“Right now they are working on some electrical components for approval, and that should take another month,” Broome said. “They will start work on the bridge after that.”

Once work begins, Broome said the bridge being worked on will be closed to one lane.

The project will replace all of the wiring, lighting fixtures and electrical conduits, ultimately building a completely new lighting system.

“This is an upgrade project,” Broome said. “We have encountered more and more maintenance with the existing street light system, and this is a good time to be able to do the upgrade and make it more efficient and make it have better service for the traveling public.”

The City of Vidalia will provide electrical power to the bridge lights when the project is completed.