Help Save Lives: Submit Comments to Missouri Highways and Transportation Commissioners

As of today, residents only have 15 days left to voice their support of keeping the proposed Highway FF road improvement projects top-of-mind for Missouri Highways and Transportation Commissioners who will vote on July 11 regarding final Missouri Department of Transporation projects to receive funding for the 2013-2017 period.

In the draft Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) for Missouri, funding for shoulders to be added along the entire stretch of is at the top of the list. "We need your help to keep it there. Timing is critical. Don’t wait to email public comments. Missouri Department of Transportation funding is tight. If we keep Highway FF as a top priority to be funded, we can make our region safer," said Shawn Archambault.

"The more the community supports this project, the more the Commission will pay attention."

Archambault founded and improvements after his 20-year-old daughter, , during November 2010.

Highway FF, located on the border of and northwestern Jefferson County, has been documented as one of the .

To submit a comment in support of Highway FF shoulders:

• Click on Draft Statewide Transportation Improvement Program, then click on comments.
• Visit the One Curve At A Time website and place comments there.
• Email comments directly to the commissioners by clicking here to get the email address.
• Call 1-888-ASK-MoDOT (888-275-6636).

Including the specific job number for the proposed Highway FF project—6S3011—will help comments be noticed. 

In the last 10 years, great progress has been made to improve Missouri’s transportation system, due largely to funding from Amendment 3 and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, according to MoDOT representatives. But Missouri’s transportation system is in the midst of a drastic funding shortage, and unless a solution is found, the situation will only get worse, according to transportation officials. 

Missouri’s construction program has dropped from an average of $1.2 billion in recent years to about $700 million.

The draft 2013-2017 STIP lists transportation projects planned by state and regional planning agencies for fiscal years 2013 through 2017 (July 1, 2012 through June 30, 2017). See related Patch article: 

Transportation projects in Jefferson County that were added to STIP include:

1. Add shoulders to Route FF
2. Add shoulders to Route Z
3. Add a third lane to northbound Interstate 55 at Route Z

"While MoDOT is pleased that we are able to incorporate these transportation projects, there will be very few like these in the future,” Judy Wagner, MoDOT Area Engineer for Jefferson County said. “We simply no longer have the resources to tackle projects that enhance our transportation system."