HWY. 34 MEETING LIGHTLY ATTENDED; ONE COUPLE SAY ACTION NEEDED

JACKSON -- Roy and Betty Meier wish the state would get in the fast lane for road improvements.

The Meiers live on the southwest corner of Highway 72 and 34 in Jackson. The couple say it is difficult for motorists on Highway 34 to see eastbound traffic on Highway 72 at the T-intersection.

"It has been dangerous for 30 years, and nobody will listen," said Roy Meier.

The Meiers were among a handful of people who attended a public meeting Wednesday afternoon conducted by Missouri Department of Transportation officials. The meeting at Jackson Middle School was held to get public input on the highway needs of motorists who use Highway 34.

It was the first of four scheduled public meetings along the 85-mile stretch of Highway 34 from Jackson to Van Buren. Another meeting is scheduled for tonight at Woodland School in Marble Hill. Meetings are also scheduled for next week in Piedmont and Van Buren.

Transportation officials said the meetings are the first step in the state's efforts to develop plans for improving the winding, two-lane road. The route runs through Cape Girardeau, Bollinger, Wayne, Reynolds and Carter counties.

Betty Meier said the highway department should first improve the Highway 34 intersection with Highway 72. Roy Meier is tired of all the talk about highway studies and wants the highway improved.

"That is the trouble," he said. "We have studies and studies and more studies, but nobody goes to work."

DawnRae Clark, project manager with MoDOT's district office in Sikeston, said the department will use the input from the public meetings in its efforts to determine what types of improvements are needed along the route. The department plans to hire a consultant this year to do a study that will spell out specific improvements. Highway officials said those improvements could include straightening and widening the highway.

Highway 34 west of Marble Hill has some dangerous curves. Clark said a number of sections of the highway from Marble Hill to Van Buren are high-accident locations.

The improvements could be either two-lane or four-lane, or a combination of the two, officials said.

The study is expected to take two years. Clark said Highway 34 crosses a number of streams, which could raise environmental issues.

There will be future public meetings as plans are developed, she said. Construction wouldn't occur until 2003 at the earliest.

Clark said any construction would be done in stages similar to what has occurred in widening Highway 60 across to four lanes across southern Missouri.

Angie Wilson, MoDOT spokeswoman, said public input could have an impact on improvement plans for Highway 34.

Wilson and Clark were among seven MoDOT officials at the Jackson meeting. There were more highway officials at the meeting than area residents.

The informal meeting began at 4 p.m. By 5:30 p.m., only seven people had stopped by the school to look at aerial maps of existing Highway 34 and projected traffic patterns.

Among visitors were Jackson Mayor Paul Sander, Jackson city administrator Steve Wilson and Cape Girardeau County Commissioner Larry Bock.

Sander said Jackson would benefit from an improved Highway 34. "It is very difficult to get from the Cape-Jackson area to Van Buren," he said.

But Sander said Jackson's first priority is the extension of East Main Street and a possible new interchange on Interstate 55. "Our main interest is in what happens right here," he said.

Bock said Highway 34 leading into Jackson is well used by Cape Girardeau County residents.

MoDOT officials estimate that 5,800 cars a day on average will travel Highway 34 between Burfordville and Jackson by 2002.

Highway 34 is the major east-west highway through Marble Hill, the county seat of Bollinger County. MoDOT estimates 11,000 cars a day will travel Highway 34 in Marble Hill by 2002.