BYPASS PLAN OFFERS SEVERAL ADVANTAGES

Planning efforts so far by the Missouri Department of Transportation to find the best way to route traffic from the Highway 34-72 junction west of Jackson into the Cape Girardeau area have shown a definite willingness to listen to new ideas.

As a result, efforts by the Chamber of Commerce and Cape Girardeau's Planning and Zoning Commission have paid off. MoDOT says it will consider suggestions offered by those groups as part of the overall planning process, even though those same suggestions previously had been rejected by the highway department.

Among the five options that were already under consideration by MoDOT were alternatives that would bring the bulk of traffic into the busy intersection where Route K (William Street) crosses over I-55 between West Park Mall and the rapidly growing commercial area along Siemers Drive. This whole area has been booming in recent years, and growth of new businesses just in the past year has been phenomenal. Clearly, both chamber and P&Z officials are right to take such an interest in how future highway construction affects that area.

What the chamber and P&Z are proposing makes sense: a bypass that starts at the new Highway 74 interchange on I-55 and arcs northwesterly to Route K between Cape Girardeau's western city limits and Highway 25 at Gordonville. At first, the highway department discounted this idea, because it would require building a four-lane highway in mostly undeveloped areas.

But, as chamber president John Mehner pointed out, that is a plus for this proposal. The bypass would open up a huge area for development. In addition, it would provide direct access to the new Highway 74 route to the Mississippi River bridge that is being constructed. And it would avoid adding more congestion to the Route K interchange, which was upgraded just a couple of years ago.

Everyone involved in this planning process -- highway officials as well as community leaders -- understands that the decision on a final plan is at least several months away. During that time, the highway department plans to hold more public hearings to get as much input as possible. This is in accordance with the overall process now used by MoDOT that relies more on local needs and desires rather than on planning engineers in Jefferson City.

So far, the process is working. The highway department's willingness to consider various ideas is welcome, and the work that the chamber and P&Z have done so far on this plan has demonstrated a fairly solid front in favor of a bypass that hooks up with the Highway 74 interchange.

In the months before a final decision is made, the effort to secure the best route will continue. Continuing support for the chamber-P&Z plan will certainly help achieve that goal.