St. Louis area celebrated the opening of Interstate 64 on Saturday, Dec. 6, by walking, running, bicycling, and dancing in the streets
Andrea Royals
– Staff Writer –
After 705 days of patiently waiting, using scenic routes, and losing valuable time, commuters in the St. Louis area celebrated the opening of Interstate 64 on Saturday, Dec. 6, by walking, running, bicycling, and dancing in the streets. The Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) invited the public to Fun on the Freeway, the grand opening of Interstate 64 between Hanley and Kingshighway. More than 2,500 people braved the cold weather to come together and witness the historical premiere of one of the most innovative highways to ever be constructed in the U.S., according to Pete Rahn the director of MoDOT.
Missouri is known as “the Show Me State,” and the I-64 project gave the city a chance to live up to its reputation.
“We wanted to deliver a ‘wow moment’ to St. Louis,” said Pete Rahn at the historical ribbon cutting ceremony on the freeway. The $535 million plan produced nine new miles of pavement, 13 new interchanges, eight new bridges, and one new lane in each direction. The project employed more than 300 men and women, 19 percent of which were minorities, said Rep. William Lacy Clay at the ceremony. Although originally planned to be constructed over a seven-year period, the improvements to I-64 were built in less than two years and under the projected budget, saving $11 million in funds.
“That is using citizen tax dollars wisely,” said St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley at the ceremony. “People said it couldn’t be done, but we did it.”
The construction concept has been on the agenda for more than a decade, and those who have been on the I-64 Project Team have been committed to its success.
“The biggest challenge has been trying to get everyone on board,” said Project Director Lesley Hoffarth. “At the beginning we had a lot of nay-sayers, but we had to keep chipping away at the negativity. It’s really great we can work around whatever problems arise.”
Cooperation between MoDOT and Gateway Constructors, the leading team of industrial construction companies that completed the project, was vital to the success of re-opening I-64.
“The credit goes to them. They listened to concerns collectively,” said St. Louis County Councilwoman Barbara Fraser.
The freeway was designated as “The Jack Buck Memorial Highway” after the famous sportscaster for the St. Louis Cardinals. It re-opened at 5 a.m. on Monday Dec. 7 and now meets federal transportation standards, while adding many minutes back into the days of several St. Louis commuters.
“I didn’t think it could happen, and they did it,” said STLCC-Meramec student Adam Kloeppel, who commutes to school from Brentwood. “It makes my life much easier.”
St. Louis has reached a milestone. 100 years ago city streets were travelled by horses and buggies, and today by hybrid and electric cars. The innovative technology that Gateway Constructors provided for the completion of the project has set a high standard for other state transportation departments to follow. “In my 25 years of being involved in policy making, this is the most prime example of local government working together. It is the most civic thing this city has ever done,” Fraser said, right before slipping into a pair of rollerblades and gliding down the fresh, new pavement of I-64.
