Nearly 300 use shuttle service to see Tour of Missouri in downtown Cape Girardeau

Nearly 300 people took advantage of shuttle service from sites at West Park Mall and the Show Me Center Tuesday afternoon to view the Tour of Missouri in downtown Cape Girardeau.

During the first two hours of operation - about the time when the race began in Ste. Genevieve - a handful of passengers took advantage of the service. But by 1 p.m. both sites reported more passengers riding on the shuttles.

The site at West Park Mall reported 138 passengers while at least 150 took the bus from the Show Me Center, though both totals are unofficial. No problems in loading passengers onto the buses were reported at either location.

Dionne Hoffmeister, coordinator of the mall location, said most people using the service were from such out-of-town locations as Ste. Genevieve, the starting city of Tuesdays's race, and Farmington, Mo., the site of today's start. She said some people wanted to ride the shuttle at 3:15 p.m., a few minutes before cyclists crossed the finish line on Main Street.

"Quite a few of the people from Farmington said they came because they wanted to check out what it was like in Cape Girardeau," Hoffmeister said. "Those riding weren't what we expected but it was worth it because we helped out those who didn't have a clue about how to get around. And that reflects positively on our city."

Marje Englemann, coordinator of the Show Me Center location, said out-of-town passengers came from as far away as California and Kansas City, Mo.

Cycling enthusiasts and St. Louis residents Brett and Tyson Foersterling said they opted for the shuttle because of their unfamiliarity with Cape Girardeau. This was their first visit to the city.

"We didn't know what was going on here or we would have chosen to drive downtown," Brett Foersterling said as he exited a shuttle from the Show Me Center. "The race brought us here, so you can chalk it up to the tour. We'll check out this town while we're here."

Nathan Lafayette of Dyersburg, Tenn., opted to take the shuttle from the mall because of his unfamiliarity with Cape Girardeau. Lafayette drove to St. Louis for the first stage of the Tour on Monday.

"Being a town where I'm not familiar with things I didn't want to get lost," said Lafayette, who drove back to Dyersburg after the conclusion of Monday's stage. "This is a good thing for the entire state. It's amazing the impact something like this can have and how much different it is in person than on TV."

Chuck Martin, executive director of the Cape Girardeau Convention and Visitors Bureau, said the shuttle service was an effort to make traffic flow easier.

"If we're all going to be honest I don't think any of us knew what to expect, especially with this event falling on a weekday and after a holiday," Martin said. "We all learned a great deal from the first time.

"We didn't go to any kind of expectation but provided it as a requested service," Martin said. "I feel like if we made life easier on people coming in outside the community or in the community to allow them conveniently park and enjoy the day's activities, it was worth it."

bblackwell@semissourian.com

388-3628

Pertinent address:

3049 William St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.

1333 N. Sprigg St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.