MEETING WILL FOCUS ON I-55-NASH ROAD WORK

State highway officials plan to shed light on a road project that promises to make a dangerous stretch of Interstate 55 between the Nash Road and Highway 74 Dutchtown interchanges safer.

The Missouri Department of Transportation will discuss the work during an open house from 2 to 7 p.m. Monday at Mac's Smokehouse at Cape Girardeau Regional Airport.

Highway officials plan to build a new northbound I-55 Diversion Channel bridge that will feature three lanes instead of two. In addition to replacing the bridge, the work will include Nash Road interchange improvements such as new turn lanes, lighting and infrastructure for future traffic signals.

Engineers, including highway district engineer Scott Meyer, will be on hand to discuss the project. Highway planners also will talk about what impact the work will have on traffic. Site maps of the project will be available for viewing.

Project manager Eric Krapf and public-affairs specialist Tonya Wells of the highway department were distributing fliers to businesses and homeowners near the project Friday.

"We want to get this information out to the public about the project's improvements and its impact as soon as we can," Krapf said.

Krapf said work at the Nash Road interchange calls for moving the ramps farther from the bridge over the interstate, which will help with turning radiuses. Overhead light poles will light the interchange. Elements of traffic signals such as conduits and cables will be buried to make it easier in the future to add signals at the interchange.

While the work is taking place, northbound and southbound traffic will use the southbound lanes and southbound bridge.

Wells said maps of detour routes will be available at the meeting and questions will be answered.

"This is a main artery for us and we want people to know the improvements are possibly coming," Wells said. "We want them to know that the improvements definitely will improve safety there."

Construction is expected to begin this fall, and the work should be complete in 2003. The low bid for the project was $10.6 million by Penzel Construction Co. Inc. of Jackson, Mo.