What have you heard about the I-64 project? Is the road closing for construction?
Are they adding lanes? Why are we doing this project?
What was rebuilt?
The New I-64 Project had a budget of $535 million and included I-64 from west of Spoede Road in St. Louis County to east of Kingshighway Boulevard in the City of St. Louis. The project rebuilt all 12 interchanges including a new interchange at I-170, added one lane in each direction from west of Spoede to I-170 and reconstructed the bridges and pavement.
Is the highway open now?
Yes. All lanes between I-170 and Kingshighway in both directions closed in January 2009 and reopened on December 7, 2009. All lanes between Ballas and I-170 in both directions closed on January 2, 2008 and reopened on December 15, 2008.
When did construction start?
Construction began in March 2007.
Why did they decide to close the highway completely, instead of leaving some lanes open?
Given the budget, time, and space constraints on the I-64 project, a two-section closure approach was the only way to accomplish all the work that needs to be done. The narrow freeway corridor restricts the options that are available. Maintaining one lane of traffic in each direction during construction would have lengthened the time of construction to six to eight years, instead of the two years it took with the full closure approach.
Are sound walls included in the project?
Yes. All proposed sound walls throughout the I-64 project corridor have been voted on and approved. All sound walls along the project corridor have already been constructed. More sound wall information can be found on the website in the Project Overview section, then on the Sound Walls page.
Now that the project is finished, does I-64 have more lanes?
MoDOT has improved traffic flow on I-64 with the addition of more lanes. One additional lane in each direction has been added from Ballas to I-170, but east of I-170, there are no additional lanes. The congestion east of I-170 is a result of out-dated design and operational problems such as steep hills and short on and off-ramps especially in the Brentwood, I-170 and Hanley areas. There are 30,000 fewer vehicles using I-64 east of I-170. Traffic flow along this section of I-64 will be greatly improved by improving the overall roadway design, interchanges and the addition of exit only lanes between interchanges.
Were there training and apprenticeship opportunities for minorities and females on this project?
Yes. MoDOT worked with the contractor, unions and local organizations and developed a plan to have more inclusion of minorities, females and economically disadvantaged individuals on the I-64 project. For more information, please visit the Workforce Development page of the website.
Why don't you put MetroLink down the middle of the highway?
The East-West Gateway Council of Governments (EWGCOG), the planning agency for the entire St. Louis region, studied and approved the plans for MetroLink from downtown to Clayton in 1997 and from Clayton to Chesterfield in 1999. The approved routes do not use I-64, but are located north of I-64. The Clayton to Shrewsbury MetroLink line, which opened in August 2006, runs north of I-64 along Forest Park Parkway to Clayton and then south along I-170 terminating at I-44 in Shrewsbury. The other study identified a future West County line that would extend from Clayton to Page near Westport Plaza and eventually to Chesterfield Valley. Currently, there is no funding in place for any of these options. For more information about how transportation options are planned for the region, visit www.ewgateway.org. For information on current MetroLink or MetroBus lines, please visit www.metrostlouis.org.
Which houses or property did MoDOT take?
MoDOT purchased 65 properties for the project. Another 79 property owners had a portion of their property purchased for the project or for a construction or utility easement.
Why was MoDOT concerned with the bridges?
There are more than 30 bridges on or over I-64 in this project. New bridges are given a rating of a 9. Half of the I-64 bridges were rated 4 or 3 before construction began. At a level 2 they are closed. Replacing these bridges was a major reason for doing this project quickly.
What are single-point interchanges?
Single-point interchanges help move large volumes of traffic through limited amounts of space safely and efficiently. The simple design makes the most of safety, capacity, and efficiency. These interchanges are a great way to maximize the flow of traffic where streams of traffic merge or separate. We have build single-point interchanges at Lindbergh, Hampton and Kingshighway. For more information on single point interchanges, visit MoDOT's web site at http://www.modot.org/stlouis/links/SinglePointUrbanInterchanges.htm#howwork
What is the 1997 Cross-County Corridor MTIA we sometimes hear in conjuction with I-64 improvements?
The Cross-County MTIA study was co-sponsored by the East-West Gateway Council of Governments, MoDOT and Metro (formerly the Bi-State Development Agency). The report identified transportation problems along I-64 and I-170 and pinpointed concerns related to neighborhood impacts, funding, safety and security, air quality and noise. The public was kept informed through community outreach meetings, newsletters and public meetings during the study.
The resulting MTIA included the broad recommendations to reconstruct I-64, along with proposed means of improving specific interchanges along the route. The East-West Gateway Board approved the study recommendations in 1997 including the location of future MetroLink alignments including the Cross-County line currently under construction, the reconstruction of I-64's pavement and bridges, improvement to the I-64 interchanges, the addition of one lane each direction from I-270 to I-170 and not east of I-170and not extending I-170 south of I-64.
The results of this study were used by East-West Gateway to program the federal transportation funding for the I-64 project.
For more information, call our Information Line at (314) 524-9191.
