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St. Louis Highway 40 shutdown

454 views 14 replies 8 participants last post by  jessitron 
#1 ·
Okay, let's face it -- shutting down the entire highway in both directions is going to be a mess. Why aren't they just shutting down one side at a time, and rerouting traffic?

I've heard rumblings about having some sort of rally towards the end of this week after everyone sees what a mess this is going to be when we're all in massive gridlock Wednesday.

Since they just announced that the first thing they're going to do is tear down the bridge at Lindbergh, the idea floating around is to hold a protest there.

Thoughts?
 
#2 ·
Honestly, It does have to happen. There have been far too many deaths of construction workers on road ways within the past few years. Obviously Saint Louisans cannot be trusted to drive slow in construction zones, so they have to close it all down. This has been in the works for some time now, it amazes me that so many people are just now standing up and saying "hey!" This needs to happen. People need to plan ahead, and deal with it. And it's going to be well worth it once it's fixed and open again. Just my two cents.
 
#4 ·
I'm in favor of the shutdown. (easy for me to say, as I don't use 40 on a daily basis.) The highway and bridges desperately need the work, and it'll get done faster this way. Knocking it down to a one to two lanes each way would slow it to a crawl and make bridge work much harder.

It's going to be an interesting few years but I'm excited about the final result.
 
#5 ·
I'm not "for" or "against" the shutdown, but I am slightly freaking out about getting around town for the next year! I'm in U. City, at the epicenter of this thing, and so many friends/places we go are west of here! It's going to be tough - a lot of time in the car! Thank goodness I was recently able to replace my broken iPod - I'll be needing it to keep me sane in the traffic!

On a more sentimental note, I'll miss the "old" highway 40. I grew up traveling on highway 40 and I'll miss its quirks. Does that sound weird?
 
#6 ·
As a doula I'm a bit worried about getting around. Getting to the two big hospitals from where I am is just going to be so ridiculous, especially during the day. I'm glad I'm having a little one and will be on hiatus for much of the closure!

I know this is so tough for folks out in west county. No one buying in chesterfield had any idea this was going to happen a few years ago. Its going to be so rough - most of those communities were intentionally planned with a dearth of through roads. It is just going to be insane. On the other hand, it is so frustrating that we have to keep paying and paying and paying and paying for the infrastructure to support ever expanding exurbs and truck shipping.

If I wasn't a birth professional the closure would not effect me one bit, except for the heavier traffic on Manchester and 44. Otherwise, I never go out that way.....
 
#7 ·
As I said, we're sort of new, so we're catching up on what's "old news" for all of you who've lived here for years.

Quote:

Originally Posted by CallieA View Post
a lot of time in the car!


I noticed that the environmental impact studies for this figured all the equations based on miles travelled rather than on time travelled. That seems odd -- we tend to use different amounts of fuel depending on the speed of traffic flow. So, you're comment about "a lot of time in the car" is rather interesting. Apparently it wasn't a factor in the impact assessments?

Dh was out in Chesterfield valley today at the Walmart (weird but true) and was chatting with some guy in line. The guy said he works somewhere towards downtown, and had been told to take Manchester to and from work. I wonder how many hours per day he'll be in his car; I've been on Manchester during rush hour and it stinks with 40 fully functioning, so I can't imagine what it will be like next week.
 
#8 ·
Needs to be done, but going to be crazy! I almost never use 40 but I will be affected! My mom lives off 109 and it is already almost impossible to get out during rush hour. With all the extra traffic, I seriously dont know how it'll be done!
 
#9 ·
Today was easy... but there was next to no traffic today, between vacations and school being out.

Manchester will stink. 44 would be superior to Manchester, surely. Manchester goes down to one lane each direction through Maplewood -- i can't imagine much hwy 40 traffic getting through that.
 
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