ST. LOUIS HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION

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MoDOT's Gateway Guide electronic billboards on major highways, as seen on I-55 south of downtown St. Louis, alert motorists to road conditions as the result of heavy fog during the last few days.

Missouri Highway Fatalities Lowest Since 1950
ST. LOUIS, MO, (SLFP.com), January 21, 2010 - Not since 1950 has Missouri seen so few people killed in highway crashes. For the fourth year in a row, Missouri has reduced its highway fatalities. Currently, the number stands at 871 in 2009 - almost 100 less than in 2008.

"Lives are being saved because the coalition partners are working together - and it's an exciting thing for Missouri," said Leanna Depue, chair for the Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety's executive committee.

Overall, since 2005, traffic deaths decreased 31 percent, due to the combined efforts of highway safety advocates in the Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety. The coalition credits a combination of law enforcement, educational efforts, emergency medical services and engineering enhancements as the successful formula for saving lives.

Since 1950, many things have changed and most differences show increases. For instance, Missouri's total population has increased by more than 51 percent, Missourians are driving five times more miles as they did in 1950, and the number of registered vehicles has quadrupled. Even the cost of a gallon of gas has gone from a mere 20 cents to an average of $2.73. But the most important number to agencies trying to save lives has now decreased to even less than it was in 1950 at 889.

"That's why this is such a huge accomplishment for Missouri," said Missouri State Highway Patrol Superintendent Colonel James F. Keathley. "When you consider the dramatic differences between now and 1950, it is truly amazing that we can have almost the same number of fatalities as we did back then and yet the huge difference in the death rate per 100 million miles traveled."

In 2007, Missouri recorded fewer than 1,000 fatalities for the first time in more than 15 years. This allowed the coalition to meet an ambitious goal one year early. In October 2008, the coalition announced a new goal for traffic fatality reductions at 850 or less by 2012. The last time Missouri reached less than 850 fatalities was 1949.

"We came really close in 2009 to reaching our goal of 850 traffic fatalities by 2012," Depue said. "If we can implement additional life-saving strategies, then we have a better chance to meet this goal."

One of the top strategies for meeting the new goal is strengthening Missouri's seat belt law to allow for primary enforcement. A 2009 survey reported only 77 percent of Missourians are buckling up. The state's rate has been at a plateau since 2004 and remains consistently below the national average of 84 percent.

"A primary seat belt law in Missouri would increase the usage rate saving 63 lives, 759 serious injuries and $179 million in costs in the first year it goes into effect," Depue said.

MoDOT Schedules I-70 Closure to Remove Bridges
ST. LOUIS, MO, (SLFP.com), January 10, 2010 - The Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) and its contractor Fred Weber, Inc., are scheduling two weekend closures of Interstate 70 in St. Louis City in February to knock down two bridges over the interstate.

The department will close the interstate, and all ramps, between the Poplar Street Bridge and St. Louis Avenue.

MoDOT currently plans to close the interstate the weekend of February 5 - 8 to knock down the Cass Avenue Bridge and close the interstate the weekend of February 19 - 22 to remove the Madison Street bridge, weather permitting.

The interstate will close at 8 p.m. on each Friday and will be reopened no later than 5 a.m. on the following Monday for each weekend closure. The work is being done in conjunction with constructing the New Mississippi River Bridge to relocate I-70 across the Mississippi River.

Additionally, the department will close I-70 reversible lanes on February 3 and keep them closed until late April to allow crews to construct the middle portion of the Madison Street Bridge over the interstate.

To get around the interstate closure, drivers must use a combination of Broadway Street, Washington Avenue and Memorial Drive. The detour around the work will be marked. However, since much of the detour is on roads with signals, drivers should make every effort to avoid the area, if possible.

"If people don't use alternate routes to travel to downtown, the detour for the I-70 work will take a long time," said Gregory Horn, P.E., project director for the Mississippi River Bridge project. "We are encouraging people to avoid the area by using other routes.

For example, people can use the Chain of Rocks Bridge on I-270 or the Jefferson Barracks Bridge on I-255 to get between Missouri and Illinois, use I-270 to get around St. Louis County, or use I-64 to get into downtown St. Louis."

An estimated 70,000 vehicles travel on I-70 through downtown St. Louis each weekend.

Archived News:

Can St. Louis Become the Bridge to Somewhere?

Increases in Rest Areas and Truck Parking Keeps Drivers Safe

Snow Brings Out Road Crews on Holiday

Traffic Congestion Increases As Motorists Navigate New I-64 Interchanges

New I-64 Reconstruction Is a 'Winner' for Motorists

Hanley Road Bridge Reopens to Traffic One Month Early

MoDOT using Twitter for Traffic Updates in St. Louis, Kansas City and along I-70

New Entrance to Forest Park Opens for Summer Season

MoDOT Reveals Top 10 Work Zones To Look Out For

Hanley Road Overpass at I-64 Taking Shape

New State Transportation Program Presents Uncertain Future

Railroad Side Track to Add Capacity for Amtrack Trains

Missouri Has First-In-Nation Economic Recovery Project

Grand Party Celebrated Opening of West Half of I-64

Reconstruction of Interstate 64 Is Ahead of Schedule

YouTube Video Shows How Dedicated Truck Lanes Could Work

Drivers Reminded Not to Barrel Through Work Zones

Missouri, Illinois Reach Agreement on New $640 Million Mississippi River Bridge

MoDOT To Launch Origin/Destination Web Tool

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