Boonville, Mo. ? Cross-state traffic was disrupted Friday in Missouri after separate truck and train accidents closed portions of the main highway and railroad between St. Louis and Kansas City.

Both accidents happened near Boonville, a Missouri River community in the center of the state.

“Traveling east-west across Missouri is a serious problem today,” said Jeff Briggs, spokesman for the Missouri Department of Transportation.

A westbound stretch of Interstate 70 near Boonville was closed after an 8:30 a.m. accident involving a tractor-trailer truck caused significant damage to the support columns of an overpass.

Motorists were being detoured about 20 miles onto U.S. Highway 40 at Midway, which takes them through Boonville before rejoining I-70. The interstate is the most heavily traveled highway in Missouri, carrying about 30,000 vehicles a day. Both lanes of eastbound I-70 remained open.

Inspectors from the Missouri Department of Transportation were assessing the damage Friday to determine what repairs would be needed to reopen I-70. There was no timetable for the road to open.

Meanwhile, one of the two railroad tracks between Kansas City and the capital of Jefferson City remained closed Friday after a coal train derailed Thursday evening.

The accident happened near Lamine, a small town just west of Boonville and just off I-70. Transportation officials said there was no connection between the accidents.