Route AB

The Route AB extension in Cape Girardeau County has moved at a bureaucratic pace the past several years. Those who travel Interstate 55 near exit 91 -- the Nash Road/Route AB exit that serves the Southeast Regional Port Authority, the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport and industrial-development areas on both sides of the interstate between Cape Girardeau and Scott City -- are no doubt looking forward to the completion of the project, which will connect the interstate with Highway 25 to the west at Blomeyer.

The project is a worthy one that will ease some of the slower-moving truck traffic along 55 and perhaps spur some economic development. The project has been in the works since 1999 when Route AB was built east from the interstate to the port. The Missouri Department of Transportation hopes to have the paving on the westward extension done by 2009.

County Commissioner Larry Bock has been instrumental in keeping the project on the move. The county has had to coordinate with state and federal officials. As a result, the project has taken perhaps longer than desired.

The county's coffers won't be tapped a great deal. U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson secured $1 million for the project in 2005. More recently, U.S. Sen. Kit Bond pledged another $760,000 for the project. MoDOT is paying $3 million for the paving. That leaves roughly $200,000 for the remainder of the project, which will be divided by the county and a handful of other public groups.

Rough plans for the project are ready, officials say. Now the county is preparing to acquire right of way and build the road structure. Projects that involve three levels of government tend to move at a snail's pace. But for those interested in the Route AB extension, it will be worth the wait.