Missouri Route 364
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Route 364, known locally as the Page Avenue Extension, is a freeway that connects Saint Louis County with Saint Charles County via the Veterans Memorial Bridge over the Missouri River.
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[edit] Route
The current termini are at an interchange with Interstate 270 to the east and at the intersection of Route 94 and Harvester Rd to the west. The freeway will eventually be extended another 12 miles westward to U.S. Route 40/U.S. Route 61 (future Interstate 64).
The opening of the freeway increases the number of lanes across the Missouri River in the St. Louis metropolitan area from 23 to 33. It provides an alternate route to the Daniel Boone Bridge, Blanchette Memorial Bridge, and Discovery Bridge crossings.
[edit] History
The East-West Gateway Council of Governments determined there was a need for the freeway in 1969. However, little progress was made until the commissioning of the Page Avenue Bridge Committee in the fall of 1984. Earlier proposals, whose alignments took the freeway to Interstate 70, could no longer be considered due to the rapid growth of the city of St. Peters. The committee proposed a new alignment and the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) authorized the project in the fall of 1986. MoDOT held numerous meetings since then, but the alignment was not approved until June 1990. The United States Congress passed legislation in October 1992 authorizing the project as part of the Pipeline Safety Act of 1992.[1] The environmental impact study was completed in November 1992. For nearly 27 years the roadway was simply referred to as the Page Avenue Extension, but in February 1996 MoDOT gave the freeway an official designation of SR-364. Construction on the freeway is divided into 3 separate phases and began with the first project in 1997.[2][3]
[edit] Phase I
Phase I included work from Interstate 270 to Route 94 through the Creve Coeur Memorial Park, but due to concerns with traffic congestion at the proposed terminus with SR-94 it was decided to extended the freeway further west along its multiplex with SR-94 to Harvester Rd. Two major bridge structures were required. They include the Veterans Memorial Bridge and Creve Coeur Lake Bridge which cost $79 million and $74 million respectively. Both structures are designed to withstand seismic activity from the nearby New Madrid Fault.[4]
This phase also included improvements to the Creve Coeur Memorial Park. The park nearly doubled in size and an existing bike trail there was linked to the Katy Trail in Saint Charles County via the Veterans Memorial Bridge. The Creve Coeur Lake was dredged and a siltation lake was added to eliminate the need for future dredging.
A ribbon cutting ceramony occurred on December 13, 2003. The ceremony was held on the east bound lanes of the Veterans Memorial Bridge. Dignitaries that spoke included then Governor Bob Holden and Senator Christopher "Kit" Bond. Following the various speeches and ribbon cutting, a ceremonial first drive occurred between Upper Bottom Rd/Arena Pkwy and Maryland Heights Expwy. Due to inclement weather MoDOT opted to use December 13, 2003 to clear snow off the freeway and delayed opening the freeway until around 10:00 am on December 14, 2003 after the roadway was cleared.
The section of the freeway in Saint Louis County has been dedicated the Buzz Westfall Memorial Highway after former Saint Louis County Executive Buzz Westfall who helped get the freeway built. Westfall died in 2003, months before the freeway opened.
In November 2005 MoDOT presented plans for upgrading the interchange at Interstate 270. A two lane flyover ramp will be constructed from northbound I-270 to westbound SR-364 to replace a cumbersome cloverleaf movement. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2008.[5]
[edit] Phase II
Phase II work will extend the freeway along its multiplex with Route 94 to Route N/Mid Rivers Mall Dr including a one way outer road system. Work along SR-94 from Portwest Dr to Harvester Rd was completed as part of the Phase I.
Funding has been secured to extend the freeway further along SR-94 from west of Jungs Station Rd to west of Harvester Rd. Grading, drainage, and utility work began in the fall of 2006. Paving, bridge work at Harvester Rd, and the outer road system is scheduled to begin in 2007. The total cost to complete the project is estimated at $32.5 million.[6]
Some funding has been secured to extend the freeway from west of Harvester Rd to west of Jungermann Rd. This project includes paving, bridge work at Woodstone Dr and Jungermann Rd, and the outer road system.[7]
The remaining Phase II projects are unfunded.
[edit] Phase III
Phase III work will extend the freeway from Route N/Mid Rivers Mall Dr to U.S. Route 40/U.S. Route 61 (future Interstate 64) paralleling, but not overtaking the existing Route N. The interchange at U.S. 40/61 and Route N, which opened in October, 2005, will become the western terminus of the freeway upon its completion. The south outer road from Bates Rd to Route K has been completed from funding provided by the city of O'Fallon, Missouri. The city will be reimbursed when the project is officially funded.
The remaining Phase III projects are unfunded.
[edit] Controversy
Controversy over the construction of the freeway came from several sources. The freeway's alignment would take it through the Creve Coeur Memorial Park and the flood plain of the Missouri River drawing opposition from environmental groups including the Sierra Club[8] and the Missouri Coalition for the Envirnoment.[9] It's high cost and debate over urban sprawl forced many St. Louis County municipalities to pass resolutions opposing the freeway.[10] A petition to put the freeway up for referendum was submitted in 1998 and enough signatures were collected to force a vote. On November 3, 1998 voters approved right-of-way for the freeway by a 61% margin and construction continued.[11] In exchange Saint Louis County accepted 1005 acres of land adjacent to the park.[12]
[edit] Trivia
- The freeway is 10 lanes from Interstate 270 to Route 94.
- It took nearly 35 years from its inception to complete Phase I.
- Phase I cost approximately $350 million.
- The Creve Coeur Lake bridge is 2,675 feet long, 172 feet wide, and 110 feet above the ground.
[edit] List of exits
The exits begin at 12 because of the planned extension westward to US 40/US 61 (future Interstate 64).
- Exit 11B: Harvester Rd (under construction)
- Exit 12: Jungs Station Rd / Heritage Crossing
- Exit 13: Muegge Rd / Route 94 East
- Exit 14: Upper Bottom Rd / Arena Pkwy
- Exit 17: Maryland Heights Expwy
- Exit 19: Bennington Place
- Exit 20A: Interstate 270 South
- Exit 20B: Interstate 270 North
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Pipeline Safety Act of 1992 (HTML). United States Congress (10 1992). Retrieved on 2006-12-14.
- ^ Chronology of the Page Avenue Extension (PDF). Missouri Department of Transportation (10 2003). Retrieved on 2006-10-14.
- ^ St. Charles County Focus (Winter 2003) (PDF). St. Charles County Government (2003). Retrieved on 2006-11-11.
- ^ Edward Kraemer & Sons, Inc. (2001-1-19). Twin Bridges on Road Extension Turn a New Page Near St. Louis. Press release. Retrieved on 2006-10-14.
- ^ Rte. 364 & I-270 Interchange Improvements. Missouri Department of Transportation. Retrieved on 2006-10-14.
- ^ Transportation Improvement Program (PDF). East-West Gateway Council of Governments (2006). Retrieved on 2006-12-07.
- ^ Page Avenue Updates. Missouri Department of Transportation. Retrieved on 2006-12-14.
- ^ 1998 Sierra Club Sprawl Report. Sierra Club. Retrieved on 2006-10-14.
- ^ Road to Ruin: Page Avenue Extension. Retrieved on 2006-10-14.
- ^ Progress on Stopping the Page Avenue Freeway. Retrieved on 2006-10-14.
- ^ "Page Avenue Extension is Approved By Wide Margin", St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 1998-11-4, pp. B1.
- ^ Edward Kraemer & Sons, Inc. (2001-11-14). Page Avenue extension is continuing on schedule. Press release. Retrieved on 2006-10-14.
