Live Chats

Questions about road construction? Ask the Road Crew, 1 p.m. Wednesday

Wondering about road work? Ask the experts from the Missouri Department of Transportation, St. Louis and St. Charles counties and St. Louis City your questions about highways and roads. The live chat starts at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 26.

3rd & 7 37yd

Remember there is a big I-270 closure this weekend. Crews will be closing I-270 near Washington/Elisabeth to remove an interstate bridge. The interstate will be closed between 9 p.m. on Friday, August 28 and 5 a.m. Monday, August 31. Detours will be marked, but please consider alternate routes, or allowing plenty of extra time due to congestion. Andrew Gates, MoDOT Communications

by Andrew Gates, MoDOT 8/26/2020 2:48:17 PM
On I-44 EB just west of Jefferson where the lanes shift to the right, can you put down some holograms or signs about the lane shift? Everyday I get cut off by someone not recognizing the shift and continues straight from the center lane into the left lane. It’s very dangerous.

Secondly, when getting off 44 at the Old Cathedral downtown, can those stoplights be adjusted, or switched to blinking red? I sit there every morning watching as zero cars enter or exit the church lot. I Can’t imagine attendance is high enough to validate the need for their own light, esp when the entry sign says church parking only.

by jake 8/26/2020 4:36:59 PM
I have asked the construction team to make sure that they have all the appropriate notifications for the lane shift on eastbound I-44, and if they do, to see if they can do anything additional to make it clearer. I have asked the traffic team to look at the signal near the Old Cathedral, but at times, there is a good deal of tourism traffic (busses, vehicles and the like) that uses that area, and there is a lot of cycling and walking traffic that is crossing the roadway (and, you don't want to have traffic backing up in the intersection (stopped by through traffic crossing on the other side (the west side) of the intersection) Andrew Gates, MoDOT Communictions

by Andrew Gates, MoDOT 8/26/2020 4:36:59 PM
Several week ago (maybe even months), the ramp from Westbound I-44 to S. Vandeventer was re-paved and temporary markers installed to assist drivers in navigating the 3 lanes which come together at the bottom of the ramp. Unfortunately the temporary markers are mostly gone and the lanes have not yet been painted - so people who are not familiar with the intersection don't know where the lanes are - creating some dangerous lane-crossings when the light turns green. Is it possible to have the lanes repainted soon or the temporary lane markers restored? Thanks again for hosting these chats!

by SouthStL 8/26/2020 5:09:37 PM
They are supposed to be striping in that area today and tomorrow. Andrew Gates, MoDOT Communications

by Andrew Gates, MoDOT 8/26/2020 5:09:38 PM
Yesterday about 4:30pm I was headed southbound on Gravois. After stopping at a red light at Jefferson (not unexpected), I then hit red lights at Ohio / Lynch, California, Nebraska and Cherokee.

Considering lights should be timed for peak flow on an arterial route, something seems off here.

by GregL 8/26/2020 5:19:51 PM
I can pass this along to the traffic team to take a look at; We do have to make sure that all directions on the roadway get a little time, although the afternoon peak would be heading south, so they would get the most time, as long as the vehicles traveled at close to the posed speed limits for the corridor. Andrew Gates, MoDOT Communications

by Andrew Gates, MoDOT 8/26/2020 5:19:52 PM
When it rains, particularly at night, most of the regions line markers are difficult to see. Has no one invented a paint that works in those conditions?

by Earl 8/26/2020 5:25:16 PM
Rain, especially the heavy downpours that seem to happen at night, does make striping roads challenging. We use reflective beads in the paint that during most regular conditions provide decent reflectivity at night --especially when the paint is newer). When it rains at night, those beads and the rain both reflect back the light from your headlights, which makes them a bit harder to see. when you have a good layer of water on the road, it can further diffuse your headlights and the reflectivity of the striping. We do also use inlaid reflective pavement markers, but they can often get covered (and the reflectivity less effective) in rain. We do constantly look for products that can reasonably be used to better see stripes in adverse conditions. Andrew Gates, MoDOT Communications

by Andrew Gates, MoDOT 8/26/2020 5:25:17 PM
Turning left onto Manchester Road from Menards at Braeshire Drive, there is a lot of vegetation growing which obstructs vision for westbound traffic. Would it be possible to have that looked at and cut back or down?

Thank you!

by Tom 8/26/2020 5:28:08 PM
I can certainly pass it along to our maintenance team to take a look at it. Andrew Gates, MoDOT Communications

by Andrew Gates, MoDOT 8/26/2020 5:28:08 PM
that's the exposed aggregate look for the sidewalk - usually to match to like sidewalk adjacent to it that property owner wants

by Street Department 8/26/2020 6:15:21 PM
Question for the city about new sidewalks poured in front of residences. I've seen that the new sidewalks are power washed shortly after pouring the cement. The effect is to expose the aggregate. I am curious why this is being done. Is it for a "vintage" look, similar to when I was a kid and I'd see these types of sidewalks? Or, as someone speculated, is it to deter graffiti artists from marring the face of freshly poured concrete? When my mom's sidewalks were replaced 20 years ago by the city, she got a swirl and border finish. Some people like the look and some don't.

by M 8/26/2020 6:15:25 PM
What is the road project going on at 109 and highway W south of Eureka. How long will this be going on?

by Don in Eureka 8/26/2020 6:32:09 PM
It is adding turn lanes, making some signal improvements and making some updates to meet Americans with Disabilities Act requirements. It is set to continue through this fall. Andrew Gates, MoDOT Communications

by Andrew Gates, MoDOT 8/26/2020 6:32:10 PM
What is the time frame on completion of construction on 44 between Bowles and 270 on ramp

by Sue 8/26/2020 6:46:46 PM
The Meramec River Bridge project is scheduled to be complete in spring of 2022. Traffic should be moved back onto the new eastbound bridge around the end of this year. Andrew Gates, MoDOT Communications

by Andrew Gates, MoDOT 8/26/2020 6:46:47 PM