SCOTT CITY: MODOT URGED TIM IMPROVE INTERSTATE-55 INTERCHANGE

SCOTT CITY -- Mayor Tim Porch hopes the Missouri Department of Transportation will cruise ahead with efforts to address the traffic bottleneck at the Interstate 55 interchange at Scott City.

But improving the interchange isn't enough, he told MoDOT officials Friday. "We need another way out of town."

Porch was one of about 30 civic and political leaders who met with MoDOT officials to push for improvements to the Scott City interchange.

The meeting was held at the Huddle House restaurant off Nash Road. Those in attendance included Scott City and Scott County officials, and local Chamber of Commerce members.

Also in attendance were state Sen. Peter Kinder of Cape Girardeau and state Reps. Peter Myers of Sikeston, Black of Charleston and Marilyn Williams of Dudley.

Porch hopes to bring officials in the region together to lobby for road improvements for the Scott City area. Porch said he wants to organize a delegation to make a presentation to the state highway commission.

The mayor said Scott City needs another route for traffic to reach AB (Nash Road), providing another entrance to and exit from Interstate 55.

Porch said some local businessmen have said they won't expand their operations until there is "another way in and out of town."

Currently, most of the traffic traveling to and from Scott City goes through the Main Street intersection, city officials said. With 15,000 vehicles a day passing through the maze-like intersection, traffic congestion is a constant safety concern, they said.

Kevin Keith, director of transportation planning for MoDOT, saw the problem first hand Friday when he traveled to Scott City to meet with local leaders. "You've got a problem," he acknowledged.

Scott Meyer, MoDOT's district engineer, said the highway department is moving ahead with planning for improvements to the interchange.

A major safety problem at the interchange has been traffic backing up along I-55 as motorists seek to get off at the Scott City exit.

Meyer said MoDOT has changed the traffic-light-activation system to allow a longer green light for southbound motorists getting off Interstate 55. MoDOT also has plans to install a permanent sign along I-55 warning motorists of traffic congestion. Meyer said that could be in place within six to eight weeks.

But Porch said that will be too late to deal with the Memorial Day holiday traffic. He worries that traffic tie-ups could lead to serious accidents. He would like to see MoDOT install a temporary sign.

Some civic leaders also suggested lowering the speed limit on I-55 at Scott City and installing other traffic warning signs along a stretch of the interstate.

But Keith said signs aren't the answer. He said they are mostly ineffective and motorists pay little attention to them. "They are not real solutions," he said.

MoDOT is looking at adding another left-turn lane for motorists exiting the interstate and seeking to turn east on Scott City's Main Street, which is state-maintained Route K.

That project also would involve widening Main Street to three lanes at the interchange. The lane could be built south of the overpass pillar alongside the railroad tracks. It's a narrow fit, but it could ease traffic congestion at the intersection, Meyer said.

"That would clear the ramp much faster," he said.

Some civic leaders suggested the state look at relocating the Kelso Milling Co., a seed and feed operation. The building sits near the interchange just south of Main Street.

A second eastbound, through lane at the interchange would either have to go south of the business or the business would have to be relocated, officials said.

MoDOT also is looking at extending James Street to connect with the outer road, providing another northbound entrance to I-55. Federal approval is needed before that project can proceed.

Meyer said he hopes some improvements can be under construction within a year.

MoDOT also plans to rebuild the Route AB interchange at the northern edge of Scott City. That project, slated to begin in 2003, includes construction of a new Diversion Channel bridge.

Kinder said MoDOT should make it a priority to address the traffic problem at Scott City. He said it should be a higher priority than building an Oak Ridge interchange in Cape Girardeau County, a project that is on the state highway plan.

Long term, the senator said the state needs to expand I-55 from the current four lanes to six lanes. That would provide three northbound and three southbound lanes.

Porch said the Scott City could see significant industrial growth if MoDOT successfully addresses the traffic problems.