chryssi @chryssi
MODOT is hosting an open house on the Grand over 44 bridge replacement 3/7 from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Carpenter Library. Construction June - Dec.
The project will completely replace the driving surface of the bridge and raise the bridge to meet interstate standards. Although the bridge will be completed in stages, drivers can expect fewer lanes across the bridge and will not be able to make left turns during construction. At least one lane will be open in each direction on Grand during each stage of construction.
Construction should start in June and all driving lanes are expected to be open by the end of the year.
The open house style meeting is 4 to 6:30 p.m. Monday, March 7 at the Carpenter Branch of the St. Louis City public library, 3309 S. Grand, St. Louis. There is limited space in the library parking lot, but plenty of free on-street parking around the library.
ricke002 wrote:Isn't Kingshighway still closed for another year? Seems like a bit of an inconvenience for folks.
This is planning for sometime further out. They'll probably re open Kingshighway and then start this work on Grand not long after.
We also have to look forward to other closures that will effect north/south traffic in the city
-Forest Park Parkway and Grand
-Forest Park Parkway and Kingshighway
Constant construction in the "new normal". I guess that's a good thing.
^Not sure. Press release says construction will start in June. Vandeventer and 44 is going to be hectic. Especially with Botanical Garden goers in the summer.
dbInSouthCity wrote:One side will be closed and all traffic shifted to the open side...than flip flop. exits to grand will be closed, Jefferson will be the detour
Wait, all of them? Why not leave access to Lafayette open for those of us that turn right towards Compton?
dbInSouthCity wrote:See plenty of arm chair QBs asking for this to be delayed til kingshighway is open. If it's that simple it would have been done. Issue is if delayed that you run into bigger impacts when every bridge on 44 from grand to Hampton is replaced in SFY 2018 (July 1 2017)
"arm chair QBs"?
Makes me wonder what they found to put such a rush into this and to not wait for the Kingshighway job to be finished.
^ see you assume that this was just hatched up last week.
at that time of planning the kingshighway bridge was supposed to be done by June 2016, when this will start but the city didn't get kingshighway delivered on the original schedule.
dbInSouthCity wrote:^ see you assume that this was just hatched up last week. It was planned at the same time as kingshighway bridge and added to the plan in SFY 2016 (july1 2015- June30th 2016) years ago and at that time the kingshighway bridge was supposed to be done by, you guessed it June 2016 when this will start but the city didn't get kingshighway delivered on the original schedule and moving this now creates a whole domino effect
Gotcha. I didn't know the Grand overpass was on the list FY16 list.
Ya just gotta assume the worst with the city projects. Choteau Ave. is a prime example. Plus didn't Jefferson take longer than expected.
dweebe wrote:I'm also not happy that we just got Southwest Ave opened back up after the MSD's screwup and now MoDOT is taking away the highway ramps until summer.
Opened back up is one way to describe it. Another would be to say that MSD added a car suspension test track at the City limits.
^ talking about the Compton Bridge over the railroad? best guess is depends on when they got $ at EWG to replace it...City usually has to apply for 80% fed funds at EWGateway for these bigger jobs.
So what is pushing the time frame of the Grand bridge replacement? Is it access to funds and the ability to get a funding match? Is it some sort of deadline set by others? Is it just to time it with the other Ameren work on Grand? I think if MoDot explains why they came to the decision they did, people will come around.
I don't think people discount that MoDot has done its due diligence in planning all of this work. But they rarely offer reasoning behind why it has to be this summer. It seems like a lot of "trust us" talk which is frustrating. People aren't stupid. If you just explain the logic behind your decisions, people will probably be more understanding.
You're going to limit access to Kingshighway and Grand at I44 during the he entire summer. That's the busiest time of year for Tower Grove Park and the Botanical Gardens. And two of the largest hospitals are of those roads. So yeah, people might ask questions. MoDot should be prepared to answers questions those rather than be insulted people would even ask.
Alex Inhen had a concerning tweet yesterday about the meeting, paraphrasing here but it sounds like MoDOT is clueless about bike lanes and sidewalks and hadn't even thought that part through for the replacement.
chaifetz10 wrote:Alex Inhen had a concerning tweet yesterday about the meeting, paraphrasing here but it sounds like MoDOT is clueless about bike lanes and sidewalks and hadn't even thought that part through for the replacement.
When the bridge construction is complete, drivers will have two northbound and two southbound lanes, and a dedicated left turn lane. In addition, cyclists will have a dedicated lane along the bridge in both directions. Pedestrians will have a sidewalk on each side, as well.
MoDOT always followed the Gateway Bike Plan on its routes...
I'm going to quote 'tbats666' who commented on the article at NextSTL:
Apparently the traffic engineers thought it would be feasible to do one lane in each direction, but had pressure from the city to leave 3 lanes for cars. (At the expense of pedestrian and bike facilities).
In talking to the modot officials at the meeng, I was surprised to find they had never heard of a lot of very basic safety interventions done in other places, Such as green paint bike lanes/sharrows and protected bike lanes (they weren't even aware of the one in downtown St. Louis). I had to show them pictures from my phone.
MoDOT always followed the Gateway Bike Plan on its routes...