New Missouri study of I-44 will highlight need for future projects along route

Interstate 44 is 50 years old. The most recent "purpose and need" study of the highway was completed in 2008. With more than half a billion dollars in state funding allocated to improving the more than 250-mile corridor, the Missouri Department of Transportation is conducting a new environmental study, stretching from the Oklahoma state line to the Franklin and St. Louis County lines.

Gov. Mike Parson last month approved $577.5 million to widen and make other improvements to I-44 but the study will be used to consider aspects beyond projects already funded and moving along. MoDOT Assistant Southwest District Engineer Greg Chapman said the study takes into account traffic volume data, safety, crashes, geological features and public input and eventually will be used to identify priority segments for further study and future improvements. There may be overlap between the I-44 projects covered by the 2025 budget allocation, but this study will also take a step beyond.

"As we receive additional funding in the future, past what we have right now, we'll utilize this study to help us make the best decision on how to spend that," Chapman said.

Chapman said the study only began at the start of the year and is expected to be completed by spring. The 2024 state budget provided $20 million in general revenue funds to pay for the study. Two consultants, Hg Consult Inc. and Garver, were selected to lead the study.

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Prioritization of future study segments will be determined by a variety of factors, including public input. So far, from the more than 600 responses, Chapman said congestion, safety and growing freight traffic are among the top concerns.

Between 2018 and 2022, there were 1,251 total crashes on I-44 in Greene County, 14 of which were fatal. While that is the highest number from the first segment from the Oklahoma state line to St. Robert, Greene County's portion of the highway is also the most congested. In 2050, the study projects average daily traffic of 63,400 cars on the Greene County portion of I-44. In 2023, that number was at 42,400.

"Some of the interchanges along I-44 in Greene County don't operate as well as they should, there're some level of service challenges, there're some reliability issues in Greene County," Chapman said.

He said MoDOT currently is working on a plan to widen I-44 to six lanes in Springfield, from West Bypass to Route 125 in Strafford. Once the study is completed and future in-depth prioritization segments are selected, another review of those segments could take another two years.

Feedback for the study can be submitted via online form on the Forward 44 website until Aug. 21.

Marta Mieze covers local government at the News-Leader. Have feedback, tips or story ideas? Contact her at mmieze@news-leader.com.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: New Missouri study of I-44 will highlight need for future projects along route