Join Linda Wilson Horn of the Missouri Department of Transportation, Todd Waelterman of the St. Louis Streets Division and David Wrone of the St. Louis County Department of Highways and Traffic each Wednesday at 1 p.m. for the Road Crew, an online chat about area traffic and transportation issues. Last week, Andrew Gates of MoDOT’s community relations department participated in the chat. Submit questions at stltoday.com/chat. Transcripts of past discussions are available. Here is an excerpt:
STC1010: There are some huge backups during rush hour at the intersection of northbound Highway 141 at Route 364. The biggest issue I see is that drivers all try to dash over at the last moment to get onto the 364 onramp. This causes too many slowdowns as too many friendly people hit their brakes to let these cheating folks over and it slows traffic even further. If nothing can be done about the lights, put up some barriers to deter the huge influx of people trying to beat the backup.
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Andrew Gates: This is another example of people who are in too much of a hurry, or simply rude. Putting up a barrier to prevent people from getting over creates a further hazard on the roadway, and reduces the ramp’s effectiveness during all other times when the roadway is not backed up.
dmbstl: I think one of the top candidates for the red turn arrow is the intersection of Skinker/McCausland and Clayton. The turn from southbound Skinker onto the eastbound I-64 ramp is only permitted on green arrow. There is a sign that states this but people still make illegal turns all the time on solid green at this intersection. I’m surprised something has not been done sooner as I’ve seen accidents and numerous close calls. I’d highly recommend the installation as soon as possible.
Todd Waelterman: The entire Skinker/McCausland — Clayton intersection is being redesigned and all the signals will be replaced along with improvements to make it more pedestrian- and bike-friendly.
Bob Liermann: I am concerned about a short stretch of South Eatherton Road between Wildhorse Creek Road and Centaur Road. This road is an extension of Highway 109 which serves as a link between Interstate 44 and Highway 40. South Eatherton has narrow lanes and absolutely no shoulders. I hold my breath every time I drive this road, fearful that I will be meeting a semi. Are there any plans to improve South Eatherton? Traffic will only get worse when the two outlet malls open in Chesterfield Valley.
David Wrone: We currently have no plans to improve S. Eatherton Road, due to the extreme expense of such an endeavor. Because the change in elevation is so dramatic, we would have to replace most of the existing road with a bridge from close to Wildhorse Creek, past Centaur. Also, the roadway would be widened to four lanes, to accommodate the anticipated increase in traffic. All of this would cost an estimated $65 million.
Ken Leiser is the transportation writer at the Post-Dispatch. Read his Along for the Ride column online and every Sunday in the newspaper.
