Legacy 2035: St. Louis Regional Transportation Plan by East-West Gateway

Legacy 2035
The preparation of this document was financed in part by the

United States Department of Transportation through the Federal
Transit Administration, the Missouri Department of
Transportation, and the Illinois Department of Transportation.
The contents of this report reflect the opinions, findings and
conclusions of the author. The contents do not necessarily
reflect the official views or policies of the funding agencies.
Legacy 2035 Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Section I
Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
Section II
Regional Trends and Future Challenges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
Section III
Focus Areas for Problem Solving: Strategies for the Future . .19
Section IV
Transportation Investment Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .97
Section V
Air Quality Conformity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115
Legacy 2035 Background 1
the pivotal Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of

SECTION I BACKGROUND 1991 (ISTEA) and its successor the Transportation Equity Act of
the 21st Century of 1998 (TEA-21). SAFETEA-LU retains a pri-
Transportation Planning and Public Policy mary focus on preservation of the existing system first, and
maintains the requirement of fiscal constraint, which emanates
Legacy 2035 is the fourth major update of the metropolitan from principles of responsible governance, and of coordinated
transportation plan that was initially adopted in 1994 by the intermodal planning. These are all important principles that sig-
chief local elected officials of the bi-state St. Louis region. Built nificantly departed from previous policies that primarily focused
upon the foundation established in the 1994 plan and subse- on expanding roadway capacity and completing the Interstate
quent updates, Legacy 2035 is a long-range vision for how our system.
region’s surface transportation system will develop over the next
three decades. SAFETEA-LU builds upon those principles, but it also includes a
number of new provisions. The U.S. Department of
The Board of Directors of the East-West Gateway Council of Transportation issued federal guidance early in 2006 requiring
Governments – the region’s federally designated Metropolitan that all metropolitan transportation plans, and transportation
Planning Organization (MPO)—has the responsibility to oversee improvement programs become compliant with the new law by
the development of short- and long-range transportation plans July 1, 2007. These new provisions have been addressed
for the region, and to select the capital projects and operational through the development of Legacy 2035. Following the adop-
initiatives that will qualify for federal funds to best carry out the tion of Legacy 2035, the metropolitan transportation plan will
goals and objectives of these plans. The MPO serves in this be updated every four years.
capacity through certification from the U.S. Department of
Transportation and under joint agreements between the states Regardless of the legal purpose for the plan, each update pro-
of Missouri and Illinois and the eight counties of the region: the vides an opportunity to re-evaluate regional transportation poli-
City of St. Louis, St. Charles, St. Louis, Franklin, Jefferson, cies and practices, and to develop a plan that reflects current
Madison, Monroe and St. Clair counties. The metropolitan understanding of the region’s transportation investment needs
transportation plan provides the planning and investment and financial realities. Legacy 2035 carries forth the spirit and
framework that guides how decisions are made about the direction of previous plans by recognizing that the central pur-
region’s surface transportation system. Every transportation pose of transportation investment is to improve the quality of
project in the region financed with federal funds must be life for citizens of the region. Within this context, transporta-
included in Legacy 2035, or be consistent with the principles of tion is recognized not as an end itself, but rather the means of
the plan. accomplishing our region’s social, economic, and environmental
goals.
The development of Legacy 2035 was prompted in part by
recent changes in federal transportation policy. In August 2005,
Congress passed the Safe Accountable Flexible Efficient
Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) just
months after the Council had adopted the previous metropoli-
tan, or long-range, transportation plan. SAFETEA-LU maintains
many of the core policies and programs initially established in
2 Background Legacy 2035
Regional Goals Framework for Decision-Making
Legacy 2035 extends its vision over a 28-year horizon. Although Simply stated, the regional transportation planning process is a
there are many uncertainties about the future, one thing will problem solving exercise. The process begins by identifying
remain constant—the citizen’s desire for a high quality of life. In transportation problems, analyzing those problems, carefully
developing a long-range plan it is necessary that policymakers, considering a range of solutions to address those problems, and
citizens, and regional planning partners consider past trends, then selecting and implementing the most cost-effective and
current realities, and future possibilities, and anticipate what appropriate solutions. The Council uses a multi-step, integrated
solutions will be necessary to address future transportation decision-making process in which the procedures for planning
needs. The adopted regional goals that guide the plan follow. and the criteria for selecting projects all link back to the policies
and goals set out in the regional transportation plan. This
• strong position in the national and global marketplace, process has six major integrated components: the regional
ensured through strategic economic development, competi- transportation plan, transportation project planning, regional
tive employment opportunities, a well-trained workforce, and project selection, project implementation, project monitoring
responsible asset management. and performance evaluation, and public engagement. The com-
ponents of the process are illustrated in Figure 1-1.
• sustainable and growing economy grounded in the wise and
coordinated use of physical, environmental, social, and agri- Legacy 2035 is the keystone of the transportation planning
cultural resources. process. As such, the plan articulates the region’s priorities and
creates the overarching planning framework that will guide
• clean and healthy environment. future transportation decisions. Although the plan is required
by federal law, the ultimate function of the plan is not regulato-
• Safe neighborhoods, communities, and thoroughfares ry. The plan’s fundamental purpose is to ensure that public
resources are used in ways that best meet the economic, com-
• Resources for learning and personal development, accessible munity, and environmental needs of the St. Louis region.
at every point of the life cycle.
The Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) is the short-term
• Varied and valued outlets for recreation and cultural implementation element of the Legacy 2035. This document is
expression. updated every year and covers a four-year period. All projects
selected for inclusion in the TIP must be consistent with the pri-
• A growing, diversified population, with equity, choice, and orities of the long-range plan. The current TIP covers the fiscal
opportunity for all citizens. years 2007-2010 and includes projects costing $2.8 billion in
federal, state, and local funds. To ensure that public resources
• Efficient and balanced patterns of growth and development are being spent efficiently, the Council and its partners monitor
that respect the land, the citizenry, the history, and the strate- progress in the implementation of scheduled projects over the
gic location of the St. Louis region. duration of the TIP.
Figure 1-1
Transportation Planning Process
To ensure consistency between the Council’s plans and pro- Performance-based planning improves decision-making by
grams, six focus areas were established to help align each step increasing the linkage between planning goals and investment
of the planning process with the goals of the regional plan. The decisions. By incorporating the results of performance monitor-
inherent assumption in using the focus areas is that any ing into the planning process, it informs decision-makers of the
progress in those areas will contribute to the achievement of how the region’s transportation system is performing today,
the region’s goals. The six focus areas are:1 and of tradeoffs between different investment alternatives,
thereby providing a basis for more strategic short-and long-term
• Preservation of existing infrastructure investment decisions.
• Safety and security in travel There are many challenges to developing a comprehensive per-
formance monitoring process. The initial challenge is defining a
• Congestion Management meaningful set of measures that provide the most relevant
information to the public and decision makers. A study on per-
• Access to opportunity formance measurement conducted for the Council by
Cambridge Systematics, Inc. in 1998 provided a basis for estab-
• Sustainable development lishing that process in St. Louis. Perhaps a greater challenge,
however, is developing the data to support that effort.
• Efficient movement of goods
One of the primary tools for evaluating system performance and
the effects of planned investments is the travel demand model.
Measuring the Performance of the Plan The Council recently completed a major overhaul of this plan-
ning tool. To support this effort, the Council commissioned
Each year hundreds of millions of dollars are invested in the household travel and on-board transit surveys in 2002. The
transportation system with the intent of moving the region clos- household survey examined the travel behavior of 5,000 house-
er to achieving the plan’s goals and policy priorities. Measuring holds in the region; the on-board survey examined the trip-mak-
the performance of the system is critical to evaluate how well ing behavior of 15,000 transit riders. These surveys are a rich
these goals and priorities are being achieved. Performance resource of information for understanding regional travel pat-
measures are indicators of effectiveness related to important terns, and they provided the data necessary to build a new gen-
issues or concerns of those making investment decisions. By eration of travel demand models. The Council has also invested
developing regional measures of performance, planners and in the development of a new state of the art land use evolution
decision makers are also able to evaluate the impacts of and impact assessment model, locally termed the Gateway
planned improvements to ensure that the region’s investment Blueprint Model, which is integrated with the travel demand
strategy supports regional goals and objectives, and to measure model. The Blueprint model will be useful for evaluating the
performance outcomes over time. This is referred to as per- social, economic, and environmental impacts of various trans-
formance-based planning. portation investment decisions. These new modeling applica-
tions will significantly enhance the Council’s ability to produce
meaningful information to support regional planning and deci-
1 Transportation Redefined included Resource Conservation as a seventh focus area. It is now incor- sion-making.
porated in the Sustainable Development focus area.
A State of the Transportation System report was prepared in • The best plans are those that reflect a reasonable balance
2005, in conjunction with the previous plan. This report sum- between local and regional priorities, such as equity, cost-
marizes the findings of a comprehensive evaluation of how the effectiveness, and metropolitan growth.
existing transportation system is performing in meeting the
needs of the region relative to each of the six focus areas used The strategy has four essential components: communication,
to organize decision-making. Key performance measures includ- consultation, cooperation, and community-based outreach, in
ed in the report were updated to support the development of addition to an evaluation component.
Legacy 2035. The State of the Transportation System report will
be updated regularly to support the Council’s long- and short- The communication component focuses on utilizing the
range planning efforts. Council’s publications to get the word out to the regional com-
munity. Those publications, the quarterly newsletter Gateways
Citizen Engagement and the weekly emailed or faxed Local Government Briefings are
widely distributed. The Council’s website is also an effective
Citizen engagement is another key element of the Council’s tool to reach citizens throughout the region.
planning process. One the most fundamental principles of plan-
ning is for all those who have a stake in the transportation sys- Consultation consists of stakeholder interaction with the
tem—commuters, community residents, business representa- Council’s standing committees, public meetings held for plan
tives, students, transit riders, cyclists and pedestrians, truck driv- updates, and a “We’re Listening” tour across the region. To
ers, public safety officials, consumers of health and human serv- inform the development of Legacy 2035 consultation efforts
ice, and others—to be involved in significant and ongoing ways were expanded to include a much more diverse group of stake-
in the process through which transportation problems are iden- holders than had previously been involved in the process to
tified and solutions developed. The Council has become address a variety of issues, including developing long-term
increasingly proactive in engaging citizens in regional problem- strategies for mitigating environmental impacts of infrastructure
solving activities over the last decade. In 2004, the Council investment; improving consistency between transportation
adopted an updated citizen engagement strategy. The strategy improvements and state and local planned growth and econom-
is currently being updated to reflect the Council’s most current ic development; identifying needs associated with movement of
activities. This strategy hinges on four important principles: freight; and improving connectivity between the surface trans-
portation system and regional intermodal assets.
• Citizens should know how decisions are made about the
investment of tax dollars in public projects. Cooperation refers to joint planning activities in which citizens
play an integral role, such as has occurred in the development
• Individuals and communities impacted by the outcome of of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan, the Regional Transportation
regional decisions want to have their opinions and perspec- Safety Initiative, the Gateway Blueprint Initiative, and the
tives taken into consideration. Coordinated Human Services Public Transportation Plan, which
all help to inform ongoing planning activities.
• Planners cannot maintain current and relevant knowledge
about regional problems without learning from citizens Community-based outreach strives to include groups of citizens
directly affected. who have been historically under-served by regional systems.
Those groups include low-income workers and job seekers, older
adults, and persons with disabilities. In 2004, the Council con-

tracted with the Starkloff Disability Institute to lead a series of
activities to see that the needs and perspectives of individuals
with disabilities are reflected in regional policies and actions
identified in the plan. The Council is currently taking the lead
on developing a Coordinated Human Services Public Transit
Plan. This plan will build upon the 2004 Starkloff study, broad-
ening its focus to identify the region’s public transportation
needs relative to transit dependent low-income households, as
well as the disabled and mobility challenged.
A Legacy for the Future
The primary goal of Legacy 2035, as the name implies, is to cre-

ate a legacy for the St. Louis region that provides future genera-
tions with the foundation they need to sustain economic
growth, increase social equity, preserve valuable environmental
resources, and improve quality of life.
Legacy 2035 Transportation Challenges and Trends 7
SECTION II TRANSPORTATION most of the money is spent. From the 1950s through the mid-
90s, the purpose of federal, state and to some degree local
CHALLENGES AND TRENDS transportation investments was to build the infrastructure that
was adequate and appropriate to keep the nation’s economy
Legacy 2035 takes the St. Louis region forward to the year moving and to preserve the national defense.
2035. To consider what can happen in that time span, turn the
calendar back to 1979. At the end of the 20th Century, the Interstate Highway System
was complete. Most of the state, county and local roads needed
Where were you in 1979? Think of work, school, play, where to support mobility had been constructed. Some major projects
you spent your free time, where you shopped and how you remained on the region’s wish list, but the overall emphasis
gathered your news and information. What did you think 2007 shifted from building new roadways to improving the condition,
would be like? operation, safety and accessibility of the existing system. That
will continue for the next 25 years.
Let’s do a reality check. Consider these current accoutrements of
daily life: laptop computers, the Internet, e-mail, MetroLink, an It may take a seismic shift in thinking to adapt an existing trans-
Automated Teller Machine, a CAT scan, a sports utility vehicle, portation system to the 21st Century when many of its compo-
pocket-sized cellular phones, anti-lock brakes, universal 911, nent parts were built 10, 25 and 50 years ago.
wheelchair-accessible public buses, in-car GPS devices, compact
discs, digital cameras and DVD players. These things are nearly Shaping the Future
ubiquitous in St. Louis in 2007—some might find it hard to
imagine life without them—but none was widely available three Legacy 2035 establishes how challenges can be met. Doing so
decades ago. will require an ongoing assessment of regional conditions, con-
tinuous monitoring and adjustments of system performance,
So, how far ahead is 2035? Try this: it’s length of time short dialogue among those with a stake in the outcomes, and a
enough so you can predict some developments reasonably well, series of strategic decisions by the region’s elected officials.
but 28 years is long enough to be outside the range of what
humans and computers can precisely predict. For Legacy 2035, Basically, here is how the process works: Municipalities, coun-
the implications are clear. With so many hard-to-predict changes ties, states or transit operators identify problems and design
bound to happen, how can you possibly make transportation specific projects to address them. If these projects are of any
plans for the next 28 years? appreciable size or cost, chances are they need federal funds. To
demonstrate a local commitment, the governmental entity pro-
Such plans are made with the belief that the future is shaped by posing the project commits some of its own resources to qualify
a series of uncertainties. The challenge of Legacy 2035 is to for the needed federal funding.
plan despite those uncertainties.
The project design is submitted to East-West Gateway as an
A second big challenge is that the nature of transportation application, where it is evaluated, scored and ranked according
investments has changed. The focus is no longer on building to criteria that are consistent with the goals of the long-range
large projects to increase the capacity of roads and highways. plan. The East-West Gateway staff prepares a priority list of proj-
Preserving and maintaining the transportation system is where ects and submits them to the East-West Gateway Board of
8 Transportation Challenges and Trends Legacy 2035
Directors for approval. The 24 voting members of the Board These computer outputs are referred to as “planning assump-
select which projects are funded. tions.” They provide the basic framework for major transporta-
This process can be used effectively to make sure that the trans- tion project selection and development. The assumptions for
portation system of 2035 meets the future needs of the region. 2035, as well as five-year interim milestones, are provided on
Building the needed flexibility into the planning and decision- the following pages.
making process is up to the participants. Toward that end, the
trends and challenges identified in this section can be used as a As looking back to 1979 showed, many powerful yet far less
list of ongoing questions and considerations. They can be used predictable developments will shape the years until 2035.
as a point of reference for: Economic, social, technological, environmental and political fac-
tors largely outside the region’s control, such as the globaliza-
• Local public entities as they identify problems and design tion of formerly local economies, will come from all directions.
improvement projects, Other factors, such as an aging population and an increasing
number of commuters with physical disabilities, will need local
• Members of the public as they participate in the planning attention.
process,
There is no way to precisely measure how these forces will
• East-West Gateway staff as they conduct analyses and make affect transportation needs and desires, but there is a need to
recommendations, and anticipate the possibilities and be ready to make adjustments.
• The Board of Directors as it evaluates the system and makes Who will the residents of our region be?
decisions about transportation investments.
East-West Gateway forecasts that approximately 2.84 million
• The rapidly changing world of the 21st Century makes it people will live in the eight-county region by 2035. This repre-
imperative that the long range plan be considered a “living sents a 10.5 percent increase over estimates of 2.57 million for
document,” meriting continuous communication and cooper- the year 2007. That is considered slow-to-moderate growth
ation among the region’s elected officials, East-West Gateway compared to the nation’s other urban areas. Figure 2-1 shows
staff and all those regional players who have an interest in the how St. Louis has compared to peer regions in the recent past
transportation system. with respect to population and employment growth. Figure 2-2
shows population forecasts for the St. Louis region through the
A Long-Term Challenge for the Region year 2035.
In the past few decades, technological advances have given

transportation planners additional tools to better prepare policy
makers for these decisions. East-West Gateway computers can
take millions of pieces of data and process them with ideas
about trends and significant events and then generate various
scenarios on what to expect in terms of population, land use,
commuting patterns and air quality.
The average age for a St. Louisan in 2035 will be higher than it
is today. The aging of the post World War II generation will
Figure 2-1 transform the region and the nation from a perceived “youth
culture” to a “silver culture.”
Figure 2-2
Population 2000-2035
Source: East-West Gateway Council of Governments
Although the following trends may not be precisely quantified,

they need to be considered as 2035 approaches:
• Those between 65 and 79 will continue to be part of the labor

force in some capacity longer than their counterparts today. In
addition, many of the region’s older citizens live alone. Of
St. Louis’ population over the age of 65, 31 percent live alone.
If that reality persists, these seniors will need a transportation
system that supports continuing mobility and flexible work
schedules, without compromising safety and privacy.
• At the other end of the age spectrum, young adults will make
up a larger segment of the region’s population in 2035 than
they do today. Almost one in three drivers on St. Louis roads
in 2035 will either be at the beginning (age 16-24) or near the
end (age 70-79) of his driving career.
• The segment of our population over 80 will be the fastest • With ever-improving medical and assistive technologies cou-
growing between now and 2035. Those who turn 80 in 2035 pled with an aging population, there will be a larger portion
would have been born in 1955, just as America plunged into of the population with a physical or mental disability. In 2005,
its serious love affair with the automobile. How intelligent more than 15 percent of the population fit that definition.
transportation technologies might keep these drivers on the Better educated and capable than ever before, the disabled of
road longer is unknown. Other alternative forms of trans- the future will expect to participate fully in community and
portation undoubtedly will be needed. economic life, and the transportation system will have to
accommodate those expectations.
Figure 2-3
Population Age Structure 2000 and 2035
St. Louis Region

• Although the metropolitan area still lags behind peer regions St. Louis County will continue to be the largest jurisdiction in
in the number of foreign immigrants and refugees who have the St. Louis region throughout the time frame of this plan—
settled here, immigration drives much of the new population even though its population is expected to decline over the 28
growth in the St. Louis region. More than half of the increase years. St. Charles County and St. Louis City will form a second
in net migration and 27 percent of total population growth in tier cluster of most-populated jurisdictions.
the St. Louis region since 2000 is attributable to an influx of
international immigrants. If this trend continues, the region Population density, a measure of persons per square mile, has
needs to adjust its transportation system to factor in those been going down in the St. Louis region as the population
social, cultural and economic differences brought by those spreads out and moves farther from the urban core. Population
groups. density is as important as size when transportation investments
are considered because densely populated communities can be
Where will we live? served by transportation initiatives that would be unworkable in
areas where people are spread out. The reverse is also true.
The extensive highway system in the St. Louis region has provid- Showing the density ranking of the eight jurisdictions of the St.
ed residents the mobility necessary to live farther away from Louis region paints a different picture of the region’s population
their destinations with little impact on travel time, resulting in base.
highly dispersed urban development patterns. As a result, areas
farthest from St. Louis’ urban core continue to experience the
most rapid population and employment growth in the region.
Table 2-1
Population 2000-2035
Jurisdiction 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035
St. Louis 348,189 352,500 353,500 354,500 355,500 356,500 357,500 358,500
St. Louis 1,016,315 1,002,258 1,021,800 1,020,900 1,016,200 1,008,700 1,004,200 999,700
St. Charles 283,883 329,606 347,800 367,900 388,100 400,300 411,100 421,900
Jefferson 198,099 213,011 224,700 233,600 245,400 255,500 263,800 272,100
Franklin 93,807 98,987 106,900 116,800 125,500 135,000 144,400 153,800
Madison 258,941 263,975 271,500 278,600 285,900 293,100 300,300 307,500
St. Clair 256,082 259,388 265,800 270,600 274,300 279,600 284,100 288,600
Monroe 27,619 31,289 32,400 34,200 35,500 36,900 38,300 39,700
Total 2,482,935 2,551,014 2,624,400 2,677,100 2,726,400 2,765,600 2,803,700 2,841,800

Table 2-2 suburbs, additional reverse commute programs, or job cre-

Population by County, 2035 ation in the inner urban core—or some combination of all
Ranked by Density three responses.
Rank Jurisdiction Persons per • Between 1990 and 2005, the number of households in the St.
Square Mile Louis region increased at a faster rate (17.4 percent) than did
its population (13.7 percent), resulting in a decrease in aver-
1 St. Louis 5,740 age household size. Despite households getting smaller, on
2 St. Louis 1,968 average, the region’s families of 2007 prefer larger homes
3 St. Charles 753 with more closets and bathrooms and larger lots than was the
4 St. Clair 435 case 25 years ago. Some older houses are being torn down
5 Madison 424 and replaced with much larger houses. This trend could lead
6 Jefferson 414 to changes in community criteria regarding parking, side-
7 Franklin 167 walks, bike paths, streets, signage and other components of
8 Monroe 102 the transportation system.
Region 634
What work will we do—and where?
The region’s employment base is expected to expand from 1.32

million jobs in 2005 to 1.49 million jobs in 2035, an increase of
Additional hard-to-quantify factors that are important to con- 13 percent. East-West Gateway’s calculations suggest that the
sider follow. counties with the highest rates of employment growth will mir-
ror those with high population growth rates. Despite slower
• Young, health-conscious adults, older adults and adults with growth rates, St. Louis County and St. Louis City will remain the
disabilities are three groups who have expressed a preference region’s major employment centers.
for communities in which economic, cultural and social oppor-
tunities are easy to access without the use of a personal auto- The goods-producing sector slowed in growth in the last 25
mobile. Those desires will affect land use decisions and, in years and was surpassed by the knowledge-driven services sec-
turn, transportation needs. tor. That is expected to continue, making highly skilled workers
the most valued asset for economic growth.
• In the second half of the last century, suburban and outlying
areas of the region favored middle-income and upper-income The following are some trends to watch carefully if the region is
developments. Commercial developments and jobs followed going to be economically competitive.
the housing market. The result is a large number of entry-level
and mid-level service jobs are in the suburbs and the lower- • The federal government, as required by law, will measure the
skilled workforce is concentrated in the urban core. This “spa- geographic dimensions of commuting patterns in 2013, 2023
tial mismatch” creates a problem for job seekers and potential and 2033 based on the decennial census. The expansion of
employers. The region’s approach to this “spatial mismatch” commuter patterns will raise questions about how large the
may take the form of expanded affordable housing in the Metropolitan Statistical Area has become and what propor-
Click on the link below to display Figure 2-4
Figure 2-4
Map
Population Growth Forecast
2000-2035
tion of the population will be working outside the eight-coun- Figure 2-5
ty East-West Gateway region. Employment 2000-2035
• By 2035, the region will have fully incorporated the effects of

the major transportation investments of the late 1990s such
as the Cross County MetroLink extension, which linked down-
town and Clayton with light rail, and the Page Avenue exten-
sion, which provided another bridge across the Missouri River
between St. Charles and St. Louis counties.
• Daily traffic patterns are affected by the growth of the mobile

service sector and a declining emphasis on factories as work-
places. With people working in various locations on various
schedules, morning and afternoon “rush hours” may be less
dominant. Advanced telecommunication capability could at
various times of the day and for various reasons either • If the long promised increased ease of obtaining movies,
increase or decrease traffic congestion. games, music and books via the Internet jeopardizes retail
outlets that market those leisure time products, communities
How will we spend our leisure time? will have to recycle those commercial spaces and the trans-
portation infrastructure that has been built at considerable
Cellular phones, digital cameras, satellite television and the public and private cost.
Internet have increased the speed with which we send and
receive information. High-tech gadgets are used to fill most • The aging population may demand more fixed route group
waking minutes with some fast-paced activity. transportation, such as buses and light rail, to and from social
and recreational opportunities. With increased needs, the
A possible reaction to that approach could have young adults paratransit system that now only serves seniors for medical
wanting to slow down that pace and focus on improving the and other essential trips might be reconfigured for these new
quality of their life. If nothing else, the aging of the population circumstances.
could slow down the societal pace. Here are some leisure-time
factors that could have implications for the transportation sys- How will we travel?
tem of the future.
One of the more interesting, and outlandish, attempts to envi-
• During the past decade, the region has increasingly invested in sion the impact of new technologies on travel in the future was
walking trails and bike paths. Citizens currently enjoy more than the Jetsons cartoon that was launched in 1962 and again in
80 walking, hiking and biking trails and on-road bikeways 1979. Hanna-Barbera took viewers out to the year 2062 with a
throughout the region. If demand continues to increase for family who traveled almost anywhere they wanted to go in air
these leisure activities, that could put pressure on local govern- cars with fold-up wings. It still seems hard to believe that the
ments to provide more pathways for walking and biking. year 2062 would support such travel, but 2035 is more than
halfway there. Is this the path we could be on?
Figure 2-6
Map
Employment Growth Forecast
2000-2035
As the sophistication of communication technologies continues • Since at least 1984, transportation has been the number two
to increase, so too will the artificial intelligence embedded in expense for households, second only to housing.
vehicles, roadways and other components of the transportation Transportation expenditures are an increasingly large propor-
system. Consider these possibilities: tion of household budgets and, with the rising price of fuel,
the costs are expected to continue to increase. In addition,
• Over the last 25 years, the proportion of trips to work in the 91,500 households in the St. Louis region did not own a vehi-
St. Louis region made in cars with only one occupant has cle in 2000. For these residents, the transit system is a vital
steadily increased. Correspondingly, the number of trips on link to regional job opportunities, shopping, health care, and
mass transit has declined. If personal autos become ever more other services. Alternative modes of transportation can often
equipped with gadgets and gizmos, will this trend continue? provide lower-cost means of travel. How these trends will
• The total distance driven by cars and trucks is known as affect the number of vehicles on the road is unclear.
Vehicle Miles Traveled, or VMT. A study by the Center for
Urban Transportation Research suggests that the rate of • MetroLink has seen a steady increase in ridership since 2000.
growth in VMT has declined since 2002. The 2005 increase in By contrast, the number of bus passengers in 2006 was
VMT was the lowest since 1980, and actually represented a roughly the same as in 2002. Total transit ridership dipped
decrease in per capita VMT. It is too soon to know whether slightly between 2001 and 2003, both locally and nationally.
the leveling off of VMT growth is a long-term trend. Since 2003, however, the total number of transit passengers
Transportation planners will continue to closely monitor has increased slowly but steadily each year. The reasons for
changes in vehicle usage patterns. the recent increase in transit usage are still being debated, but
possible answers include a growing consumer taste for alter-
• Security concerns have changed air travel. If homeland securi- native transit, coupled with increases in automobile operating
ty concerns affect national and regional policies about surface costs.
transportation, there could be an effect on the transport of
goods and services by truck. Personal travel may also be Figure 2-7
affected as well as public transit. Vehicle Miles of Travel 1970-2005
• Between 1980 and 2005, income and wealth became increas-

ingly tied to post-secondary education, widening the gap
between low-income and high-income households. In 2005,
about 28 percent of adults in the St. Louis region held post-
secondary degrees. Higher income individuals could use pub-
lic transit less and less while lower income individuals may be
using it more and more. The region could choose to establish
an “intelligent transportation system” that serves all citizens
of the region instead of leaving the private market place as
the mechanism to distribute opportunity.

Figure 2-8
• With increasing demand for more sophisticated and accessible Bus and Light Rail Ridership
transportation alternatives, state and local governments will
be challenged to fund these improvements. Current projec-
tions suggest that the region will need to seek new revenue
sources in order to establish adequate streams of transporta-
tion funding. Compared to peer regions, St. Louis nears the
bottom in local government revenue, local government spend-
ing and local government debt. Will current funding struc-
tures be sufficient to meet future transportation needs?
How will we support it all?
Remember the energy crisis of the 1970s and the long lines of
cars at filling stations when the talk of energy conservation was
a national pastime? It is all but a fading memory. In fact, we
are finding ways to extract more fossil fuel from existing fields.
But amid this national complacency, leading geologists and oil Source: Madison County Transit and Metro
consultants are telling us a different story and that is global
production of cheap crude oil could peak between 2010 and
2020. This event will be an historic crossroads for human civi- Figure 2-9
lization. Adding to this turning point is an ever-rising demand Trends in Transit Ridership
for oil, in the industrialized world as well as developing coun-
tries. The prospect of a truly global energy crisis is real, but the
solution grows right here in our own backyard.
Alternative transportation fuels hold significant promise in lead-

ing us to an energy efficient future. By supporting the growth
and development of homegrown American fuels like ethanol,
biodiesel, propane, compressed natural gas, and hybrid tech-
nologies, we can improve air quality, create domestic jobs in
Missouri, Illinois and the nation, and reduce our dependence on
imported fossil fuels, thus insuring our nation’s energy security.
Ethanol is produced from corn by fermenting crop starches and
sugars. Biodiesel is an organic fuel made primarily from crops
like soy, peanut, and sunflower canola. Infrastructure that
accommodates these home grown fuels will also help build the
Source: Madison County Transit, Metro and American Public Transit Association
bridge to an energy future based on hydrogen. Hydrogen is the

most abundant element on earth and can be derived from a
variety of feedstocks including water and biomass. This diversi-
ty of supply is key to helping us eliminate our dependence on a
dwindling supply of fossil fuels.
Elaborating on a vision for a hydrogen future, President George

W. Bush has noted, “By being bold and innovative...we can
change our dependence on foreign sources of energy...Let us
promote hydrogen fuel cells as a way to advance into the 21st
Century.”
2035: It’s Not a Done Deal
The pages that follow in Legacy 2035 identify the goals, priori-
ties, strategies and major transportation projects for the St.
Louis region for the next 28 years. This chapter was intended to
raise general awareness about a variety of complex and largely
unpredictable trends and challenges that will evolve during that
time period. These forces will require us to continuously refine
and adjust our long-term investment plan. Toward that end, we
encourage communities to keep these potential trends and chal-
lenges in mind as projects are developed. Further, we urge that
each and every project idea and design be held up against each
community’s understanding and desires for future economic,
cultural and environmental growth—in complement to regional
considerations.
2035 can be what we make it.

Legacy 2035 Focus Areas for Problem Solving 19
SECTION III FOCUS AREAS FOR • Access to opportunity. Addressing the complex mobility
needs of persons living in low-income communities, the elder-
PROBLEM SOLVING ly, and persons with disabilities.
Legacy 2035 carries forward a planning and decision-making • Sustainable development. Coordinating land use, trans-
structure centered on the needs of the customer and the portation, economic development, environmental quality,
region’s social, economic, and environmental aspirations. energy conservation, and community aesthetics.
Recognizing the difficulty of associating specific decisions with
specific outcomes, a series of focus areas have been utilized • Efficient movement of goods. Improving the movement of
over time to organize transportation system evaluation and freight within and through the region by rail, water, air, and
decision-making. The implicit assumption in using the focus surface transportation modes.
areas is that progress in these areas will contribute to attaining
regional goals. A discussion of the primary issues and needs associated with
each focus area continues through this chapter. Long-range
The focus areas have guided planning and programming for strategies for addressing those needs are identified for each
nearly 15 years. They serve as the evaluative framework for focus area.
identifying and defining problems and regional needs, develop-
ing and evaluating options, and selecting preferred alternatives
and strategies in long- and short-range planning studies. They
are used to establish priorities in selecting projects for the
Transportation Improvement Program and the metropolitan
transportation plan. They provide a reference point to ensure
consistency in the Council’s various planning programs and
tracking progress in meeting regional goals. The six focus areas
are:
• Preservation of existing infrastructure. Maintaining the cur-

rent road, bridge, transit and intermodal assets in good condi-
tion.
• Safety and security in travel. Decreasing the risk of personal

injury and property damage on, in, and around transportation
facilities.
• Congestion Management. Ensuring that congestion on the

region’s roadways does not reach levels that compromise pro-
ductivity and quality of life.
20 Focus Areas for Problem Solving Legacy 2035
PRESERVATION OF EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE Figure 3-1

Cost of Deferred Maintenance
Overview
The Council was progressive nearly 15 years ago when it estab-

lished preservation as the region’s top priority for transportation
investment. The region’s stakeholders and political leaders rec-
ognized how integral a high quality transportation system is to
maintaining the social and economic vitality of our region.
Since that time, the region has made great strides in not only
maintaining, but improving the condition of the existing system.
It has taken steady investment and an unwavering commitment
to make such improvements. With increasingly scarce funding,
and rising costs for steel and energy, it is more important than
ever to continue this focus on improving the system through
preventative maintenance, rehabilitation, and reconstruction of
Source: M.Y. Shahin and J.A. Walther. Pavement Maintenance Management for Roads and Streets
the existing system to get the most out of our past and current Using the PAVER System
infrastructure investments. construction materials around the globe, and energy costs con-
tinuing to rise, the high rate of construction cost increases will
This is not only a major challenge for St. Louis, but also one the persist in coming years.
entire country must address. Many metropolitan areas have
neglected their maintenance responsibilities, in lieu of policies Neglecting the region’s preservation needs is not a feasible poli-
heavily favoring expansion. This has created an enormous cy choice. Putting off maintenance due to fiscal pressure proves
national burden, as many metros try to catch up on preserva- to be even more costly in the future. As shown by Figure 3-1,
tion needs. In fact, the most recent report on the status of the the worse the condition of a roadway surface, the greater the
nation’s transportation system estimates that it will cost $78.8 cost to repair it. The cost of neglecting maintenance is not lim-
billion annually to maintain America’s current highway and ited to simply repairing infrastructure either. Poorly maintained
bridge system in its current condition between 2005 and 2024, transportation systems also cost the local economy by deterring
and an additional $51.9 billion to actually improve it. Transit private investment, creating unsafe conditions for travelers,
systems are estimated to require an annual investment $15.8 unnecessary delays due to vehicle and bus breakdowns, and
billion to maintain them and an additional $6 billion to see potential limitations for emergency vehicle services. The condi-
improvement.2 The cost of constructing highways and streets, tion and aesthetic quality of the region’s infrastructure is a
according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, has increased at an reflection of regional values and community pride. Continuing
annual rate of 5.1% between 1996 and 2006. Even more strik- to keep preservation of our transportation system as the top pri-
ing is that in the last two years of that decade, these construc- ority can mitigate these undesirable consequences of poor
tion costs increased by 24.7%.3 With increasing demand for maintenance.
2 Based on 2004 data from Figure 7.1, 2006 Status of Nations Highways, Bridges, and Transit:
Conditions and Performance, US Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration.
3 Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2007. Producer Price Index Industry Data, Highway and Street
Construction. BLS Series ID: PCUBHWY—BHWY.
Figure 3-2
Map
Pavement Conditions
Analysis
If left untreated, transportation infrastructure will deteriorate. Figure 3-3

It has a limited lifetime that varies by materials, craftsmanship, Pavement Conditions: State Maintained Roadways
weather conditions, traffic volumes and various other factors.
Routine maintenance will prevent it from deteriorating to the
point of requiring major rehabilitation. The investments identi-
fied in Legacy 2035 are expected to continue improving the
condition of the region’s pavement, bridge and transit assets
over the term of the plan. The current condition of the trans-
portation system provided a basis for developing investment
targets to accomplish that goal. The condition of these regional
assets is summarized below.
Pavement Conditions
Figure 3-2 shows the condition of state maintained roads within

the region. Conditions are categorized as good (no visible signs Source: MoDOT 2006, IDOT 2005
of deterioration), fair (moderate deterioration) and poor (severe
deterioration). Pavement and conditions are evaluated once a
year in Missouri and every two years in Illinois. Because of past The pavement conditions on area highways today are a great
investment practices, pavements on the region’s state main- improvement over the condition of the state maintained system
tained highways are in reasonably sound condition, with a decade ago. The percentage of pavement in poor condition in
approximately 58 percent of the pavement rated as good, 21 the Missouri portion of the region has dropped in half from 51
percent fair, and 21 percent in poor condition. percent in 1995 to 23 percent in 2006. Illinois maintained the
good condition of their roads during the same time period, fluc-
Conditions vary significantly by state and roadway type, howev- tuating minimally, with never more than 8 percent of the system
er, due to historical variations in investment policies. In the falling into poor condition.
Illinois portion of the region, where investment has historically
been focused on maintenance, 71 percent of its roads are in Previous policies for both states focused on improving the con-
good condition and only 7 percent are in poor condition. In dition of Interstates first, since that portion of the system sup-
Missouri, where the system is much more extensive and devel- ports a majority of regional travel, to get the most benefit per
opment pressure has required more expansion until recent dollar invested for travelers. Once the conditions of the
years, 56 percent of its roads are in good condition and 23 per- Interstate system improved and stabilized, policies shifted to
cent of its roads are in poor condition. place greater emphasis on improving the arterial system, while
continuing to maintain the conditions of Interstate routes. This
investment approach has proven to be positive for the region.
As the data show, conditions have improved considerably in
both states over the last decade, particularly in Missouri portion
of region. In 1995, only 21 percent of the Interstate roads, and

Figure 3-4
28 percent of principal arterial roads were classified as being in
Illinois Pavement Conditions, 1995-2005
good condition in Missouri counties. By 2006, 80 percent of
Interstates and 69 percent of arterials were rated as being in
good condition.
Conditions vary a great deal by county, as well. Investments

focused on the Interstate system in Jefferson and St. Louis coun-
ties have paid off for travelers in those areas. The percentage of
Interstates in good condition in both counties rose considerably
since 1995, with 85 and 72 percent respectively, of pavements
now rates as good. There is still much work to be done on
improving the condition of the region’s arterial system. In the
City of St. Louis, 62 percent of state maintained arterial roads
are in poor condition.
Source: IDOT, based on mileage
Although the conditions do vary among state and roadway sys-

tem, most drivers are minimally impacted by poor pavement
conditions. Only about 2 percent of travel in Illinois, and 10
percent of travel in Missouri occurs on roads with poor pave-
ment conditions, although conditions do vary of course by Figure 3-5
county and roadway system. Due to the poor condition of arte- Missouri Pavement Conditions, 1995-2005
rials in the City of St. Louis, travelers there are experiencing the
highest level of poor pavements.
Even with the great strides made towards improving roadway

surface conditions, the demand for investment in this focus area
is still high. Highway preservation needs are a moving target
that require constant attention. As improvements are made in
one portion of the system, another area is falling into disrepair.
The states do have responsibility over a small number of minor

arterials, collectors, and other minor roads that certainly need
some attention, but it is a very small percentage of the local Source: MoDOT, based on lane miles
roadway system. Local governments are responsible for main-
taining a majority of local roads, which is a huge responsibility
given that portion of the system consists of approximately
15,000 miles roadway. Currently, a regional database of local
road conditions does not exist to track the level of need on this
Table 3.1
State Maintained Pavement Condition by County and Road Type
Interstate Principal Arterial Other All

Percent Percent Percent Percent
Good Fair Poor Good Fair Poor Good Fair Poor Good Fair Poor
Franklin 69.8 28.5 1.7 72.8 12.3 14.9 23.5 25.8 50.7 36.4 24.4 39.3
Jefferson 87.5 11.2 1.4 85.8 7.6 6.6 28.1 27.1 44.7 58.0 17.7 24.3
St. Charles 87.7 10.9 1.4 74.9 16.0 9.1 28.7 38.5 32.7 56.1 25.4 18.5
St. Louis 80.1 15.7 4.2 67.1 22.5 10.3 20.1 13.7 66.2 67.6 18.9 13.5
St. Louis City 78.8 14.8 6.4 12.7 25.2 62.2 26.1 13.1 60.7 49.6 17.3 33.1
Missouri 80.5 15.8 3.7 68.8 18.2 13.1 25.4 26.9 47.6 56.2 20.7 23.1
Madison 88.7 11.3 0.0 77.0 20.7 2.3 42.7 34.3 23.0 70.3 22.6 7.1
Monroe 100.0 0.0 0.0 83.9 14.7 1.4 66.6 5.2 28.2 83.1 12.8 4.0
St. Clair 73.4 26.6 0.0 74.8 16.0 9.2 56.8 32.9 10.3 70.1 21.7 8.2
Illinois 83.1 16.9 0.0 76.7 18.2 5.1 49.5 32.9 17.6 71.0 21.6 7.4
Regional 80.7 15.9 3.4 70.6 18.2 11.2 27.9 27.5 44.6 58.4 20.8 20.8
Percentages are based upon lane miles of state maintained roads
Source: MoDot 2006, IDOT 2005
Table 3.2
Percentage of Vehicle Miles of Travel on Roadways in Poor Condition
Roadway Franklin Jefferson St. Charles St. Louis St. Louis Madison Monroe St. Clair
Classification County County County County City County County County MO IL Region
Interstate 3.0 3.2 1.7 5.4 4.9 0 0 0 4.6 0 3.6

Principal Arterial* 13.7 5.3 12.6 13.0 53.4 2.3 2.3 2.5 14.0 2.4 11.2
Other ** 39.8 39.2 14.9 24.4 31.2 5.3 0 8.6 27.6 6.8 20.8
Total 12.9 10.8 8.5 9.4 16.1 1.5 1.1 2.8 10.4 2.1 8.4
*Includes freeways, expressways, and other principal arterials other than interstates
** Includes minor arterials, collectors, and other minor roads
Source: East-West Gateway Council of Governments, MoDOT 2006 and IDOT 2005
portion of the system. Local roads are of particular importance, The highest percentages of state-owned deficient bridges are in
not necessarily because they support large amounts of travel, St. Louis City and St. Clair County. Similar to pavement condi-
but they are important to connecting neighborhoods, attracting tions, data shows the region’s dedication to preservation has
local business, and making the overall traveling experience bet- improved the condition of state- maintained bridges as well.
ter. Sometimes maintaining local roads is an even greater chal- Since 1995 all counties have experienced a reduction in the per-
lenge than maintaining state highways and Interstates because centage of deficient bridges on the state system, with the
they often include sidewalks and other amenities that accom- exception of Monroe County, where conditions remained con-
modate foot traffic, a necessity for providing mobility and stant. St. Louis City and Madison County showed the biggest
accessibility to local businesses and services and to the transit improvement in with a 24 and 13 percent reduction in the num-
system. Nonetheless, there is a need to track conditions to ber of deficient bridges, respectively.
understand the level of investment, and to measure perform-
ance over time.
Future highway preservation investments should continue plac- Table 3-3

ing emphasis on further improving conditions of major arterials Bridge Conditions: State and Locally Maintained
as well as minor arterials, collectors and other local roads while
maintaining the overall integrity of the highway system. Deficient Total Percent
Bridges Bridges Deficient
Bridge Conditions Missouri
State 2005 243 1,107 21.95%
Bridges are another critical element of the transportation system
that requires constant upkeep and maintenance. The region cur- Non-State 2005 306 1,026 29.82%
rently has 3,205 bridges to maintain. Fifty-two percent of those Combined 549 2,133 25.74%
bridges are maintained by the states, the rest are the responsi- Illinois
bility of local governments. Overall, approximately 24 percent State 2005 119 565 21.06%
of the bridges are deficient (either structurally deficient or func-
Non-State 2005 100 507 19.72%
tionally obsolete). Structural deficiencies are characterized by
deteriorated conditions of significant bridge elements and Combined 219 1,072 20.43%
reduced load-carrying capacity. Functional obsolescence is a Regional
function of the geometrics of the bridge not meeting current State 2005 362 1,672 21.65%
design standards. Neither type of deficiency indicates that a
Non-State 2005 406 1,533 26.48%
bridge is necessarily unsafe.4 Although Missouri has twice the
number of bridges than Illinois, both systems are in fairly good Combined 768 3,205 23.96%
condition with approximately 21 percent of bridges falling into Source: IDOT, MoDOT
deficient status.
4 2006 Status of the Nation’s Highways, Bridges, and Transit: Conditions and Performance, U.S.
Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, 2007.
Figure 3-6
Map
Bridge Conditions
Figure 3-7 Similar progress has been made to reduce the number of defi-
2005 Bridge Conditions: State and Locally Maintained Structures cient bridges on the local system as well. Thirty percent of
locally maintained bridges are deficient in Missouri counties.
St. Louis City has the highest concentration, with 51 percent
of its locally maintained bridges rated deficient. This is down
from 67 percent in 1995, but is still 15 percent higher than in
St. Louis County. Preservation of the local system is a particu-
lar challenge in today’s fiscal environment, where many local
governments are faced with extremely tight budgets, an aging
system, and growing investment needs. Many older commu-
nities are experiencing a loss in tax base as development
moves further away from the central core of the region. A
limited amount of federal funds are made available through
the Transportation Improvement Program. Local governments
must compete against one another, however, for a relatively
small amount of funds. Given the great level of investment
needs throughout local communities in the region, competi-
tion for the funding is intense.
Source: MoDOT, IDOT
Transit
Figure 3-8
Percent Change in Deficient Bridges, 1995-2005
The highway system and transit system are distinct, but integral
to providing a system that serves all of the region’s transporta-
tion needs. Improving the condition of highways and bridges
also benefits the transit system. Managing the transit system,
however, includes managing and maintaining its buses, para-
transit vans, light rail cars, and other supporting infrastructure.
Just as private cars deteriorate under heavy wear and tear and
many miles of service, so do transit vehicles and fixed assets.
The condition of transit assets, however, can have a great deal
of influence over the potential success of the system.
Metro has been proactive in managing their capital assets over

time. As shown in Table 3-4, less than 5 percent of Metro’s
buses, vans and light rail are beyond their useful life. On aver-
age, the age of Metro’s current fleet is less than 50 percent of
Source: MoDOT, IDOT

its useful life. Metro has retired aging vehicles, and has Past Actions and Future Directions
decreased the overall size of their fleet in recent years. At the
same time, they have been proactively replacing buses and vans The Council has emphasized preservation needs in the program-
at the end of their life cycle with new vehicles with upgraded ming of federal funds, encouraging MoDOT to commit more
technologies to meet today’s service needs. This has reduced funding to road and bridge rehabilitation, and using preserva-
costs and improved service. tion as the top priority in the selection of local projects using
suballocated Surface Transportation Program funds since 1994.
Madison County Transit (MCT) has also had a proactive bus and MoDOT has dedicated a set amount of funds annually for
van replacement program to maintain high service quality. bridge and pavement preservation. Targets were initially set for
None of MCT’s transit vehicles are currently beyond their useful $35 million for bridges and for pavement each year; in 2002 the
life. Overall, MCT vehicles average almost 75 percent of their targets were raised to $50 million for bridges and $70 million
useful life. The asset management programs that MCT and each year for pavement and roadway preservation. From 2007
Metro have in place are critical to creating an attractive and to 2010, the end of the current Transportation Improvement
comfortable transit system. Up-to-date technologies, that run Program, $1.2 billion has been programmed in federal, state,
efficiently and breakdown less, make service more attractive to and local funds for road, bridge, and transit preservation needs,
current and potential riders. Continuing to support the region’s representing 43 percent of the total program.
transit asset management programs is critical to the region.
Table 3-4
Transit Fleet Condition: 2007
Vehicle Type Number of Useful Life Actual Percent of Number

Vehicles (Years) Average Age Useful Life Beyond Useful Life
Metro
30-40’ Bus 389 15 6.91 46.1% 0
Van 124 5 4.14 82.7% 29
Light Rail 87 20 8.95 44.8% 0
Total 600 — 6.63 48.6% 29
Madison County Transit

30’ Buses 22 10 8.92 89.2% 0
40’ Buses 41 12 9.59 79.9% 0
Cutaway, Light Duty 48 5 2.46 49.3% 0
Total 111 — 6.38 74.3% 0
Source: Metro and Madison County Transit

Preserving the system now and in the future will require contin- The following strategies will guide future Council efforts in
uing the region’s dedication to this goal. Regional collaboration the area of preservation:
will be key, particularly as the needs arise to undertake major
reconstruction efforts. Major reconstruction projects will • Invest what is needed to continuously improve the condition
require significant coordination and costly mitigation to miti- of pavements and bridges on the state highway systems and
gate impacts for travelers. This year, MoDOT began the recon- to adequately maintain regional transit assets
struction of I-64 between Spoede Road and Kingshighway
Boulevard, which traverses the heart of the St. Louis region. • Give priority to preservation in the programming of
The I-64 reconstruction project is the largest reconstruction proj- Suballocated STP funds to encourage the consistent improve-
ect, in both scope and cost, in St. Louis history. It is the first ment of locally-owned roads and bridges
time a design-build approach has been implemented in
Missouri. The goal for the project is to complete the project • Accelerate the rehabilitation of the arterial road system
within a four-year timeframe within a $535 million budget.
Many of the lessons learned through the implementation of the • Encourage local governments to develop comprehensive asset
I-64 reconstruction project will set precedent for future projects management program to track conditions of transportation
of similar size that will inevitably arise as the system ages over assets maintained by local entities
time.
Nearly 70 percent or X Dollars of the investments identified in

Legacy 2035 are dedicated to maintenance, rehabilitation, and
reconstruction of existing highways, bridges, and transit assets.
Maintaining a progressive approach to management of the
region’s transportation system is critical to continue improving
their condition. Deferring this responsibility due to the increas-
ingly tight fiscal environment is not a feasible option.
Preservation of the existing system is fiscally responsible, and
will remain the basic tenet of the transportation planning and
programming process now, and in years to come.
Intentionally blank
REGIONAL SAFETY AND SECURITY ing and mitigating the impact of major incidents by focusing on
the physical design of the system itself—assessing vulnerabili-
Overview ties, seismically retrofitting bridges, or creating redundancy in
the system so when a portion of the system is out, whether for
When thinking of transportation safety, most think of motor reconstruction, a major motor vehicle incident, or due to flood-
vehicle crashes and traffic incidents that occur on the region’s ing, traffic can be diverted to maintain mobility throughout the
highways. Nearly everyone has either experienced or witnessed region. These are very important to creating a safe and secure
a crash. On average, one person is killed and 92 others are system.
injured each day in the region as a result of motor vehicle crash-
es. The unfortunate fact is that a majority of crashes are the The flooding of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers in 1993, and
result of bad driving behavior, and could be prevented if drivers more recently the events of 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina, brought
would take caution and be more responsible in following the emergency response and regional security issues to the forefront
rules of the road. As a result, much of today’s transportation of public discussions. These events also raised a number of
safety efforts focus on crash prevention, increasing driver questions related to the security of our transportation system,
awareness, reducing impaired driving, increasing the use of such as how to deal with the long-term effects of a major disas-
seatbelts and child restraints, and improving pedestrian safety ter; given fiscal limitations, how do we pay for increasingly
on and around the highway and transit systems. Improving expensive costs associated with keeping our system secure; and
driver safety and reducing the unnecessary loss of life or serious is there enough resiliency and redundancy built into our trans-
injury associated with the use of our transportation system will portation system and communications systems to maintain
always remain a formidable challenge for the region. mobility during such an event. Any incident, whether caused by
a motor vehicle crash, an incident transporting hazardous mate-
There are many other aspects to maintaining a safe environment rials, a natural disaster or an intentional terrorist act, can cripple
for travelers other than preventing and responding to motor our transportation system resulting in significant economic and
vehicle crashes, however. Few people think about the tremen- social impacts. Ensuring that the transportation system and its
dous responsibility and importance of keeping the region’s users are safe and secure today requires much more than trans-
transportation system—bridges, highways, transit facilities, rail portation planning and engineering, it requires extensive coordi-
lines, airports, intermodal centers, ports, communications sys- nation, collaboration, and planning among transportation oper-
tems and citizens—safe and secure in the event of a major natu- ators, emergency responders, police and fire services, and the
ral disaster such as an earthquake, flood, tornado or even a ter- private sector. Due to the uncertainty of when, where, and
rorist attack. Yet, transportation safety and regional security are what impacts such an event could impose, nobody can expect
inextricably linked today, as emergency management planners to prevent impacts of such a major event. Rather efforts have
and first responders work together with transportation planners been focused on improving preparedness and response.
to prepare for potential large-scale incidents. Continuing to improve and build upon previous planning and
emergency management planning efforts, and integrating
One of the primary goals of those who design, manage, and regional security planning into the metropolitan planning
operate our transportation system is to create a system that is process will be key to achieving our region’s long-term goal of
safe and secure through a combination of engineering, enforce- maintaining the safety and security of our transportation system
ment, education, and more recently emergency response strate- and the region’s communities.
gies. Most of the activities to date have been aimed at prevent-
Analysis Figure 3-9

Fatality Trends 1995-2005
Highway Safety
Crashes are one of the many risks associated with motor vehicle
use. Every time someone takes a seat behind the wheel, they
are at risk of being involved in a motor vehicle crash that could
seriously harm themselves or others. Most people do not think
twice about it, because driving is such a large part of every day
life, until it affects them. An average of 86,400 crashes occur
on highways each year throughout the St. Louis region. Most
of these crashes are fairly minor involving only property dam-
ages, yet many result in injury or even death. Each year the
region loses 329 lives due to motor vehicle crashes. For each
person tragically killed, another 92 are injured. The real tragedy
is that a motor vehicle crashes are the number one killer among
young people in the region, and the third top cause of prema-
ture loss of life.5
Source: Missouri Highway Patrol, IDOT
Recent trends show traffic safety is improving in the region.

The number of fatalities and injuries associated with crashes has Figure 3-10
fallen appreciably over the last decade, both in real terms and in Injury Trends 1995-2005
rates. In 2005, the region’s fatality rate per 100,000 population
was 12.6, and the rate per 100 million vehicle miles traveled
was 1.28, both well below national rates of 14.6 and 1.45.6 On
both measures, fatality rates improved by approximately 10 per-
cent since 1995. Similar improvements were observed for injury
rates during that period. The rate of injury for 2005 was
1,113.3 injuries per 100,000 population and 114.2 per injuries
per 100 million vehicle miles traveled. Although regional injury
rates are higher than national averages, both rates dropped by
approximately 25 percent since 1995.
Source: Missouri Highway Patrol, IDOT
5 Rajesh Subramanian, Motor Vehicle Traffic Crashes as a Leading Cause of Death in the United
States, 2003.;Traffic Safety Facts, NHTSA, March 2006.
6 2005 Traffic Safety Facts Annual Report, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, January
2004.
Historically, declines in fatalities and injuries related to crashes A common misconception of the general public is that the more
have been the result of combined efforts in technology, tougher lanes, the wider, and straighter the road is the safer it is.
laws, education, and enforcement. New technological innova- Recent research is showing that major roadway improvements
tions in vehicles such as air bags and anti-lock braking systems, may actually lead to small increases in fatalities and injuries.8
combined with higher safety standards have given drivers more The more comfortable the road is, the faster drivers go, which
protection on the road. Increased use of seatbelts, child increases the potential for severe life-threatening crashes. The
restraints, and helmets on motorcycles has decreased the true culprit in most severe crashes resulting in injury and fatali-
severity of crash outcomes. Tougher laws combined with educa- ties is driver behavior. In fact, a review of fatal crash data
tion and more strategic enforcement efforts to combat impaired between 2000 and 2005 indicated that the top five contributing
driving and to encourage seatbelt usage have also contributed causes of fatal crashes in the region are all related to bad driver
to improvements. Growth in highway congestion, while choices—impaired driving, inattention, speeding, driving too
increasing the risk of being involved in a crash, has decreased fast for conditions, and improper lane usage.
crash severity because of slower speeds. There has been a drop
in the number of teenage drivers, who nationally, are involved The human element is the most unpredictable factor affecting
in three times as many fatal crashes as all other drivers. Finally highway safety, and the most difficult challenge to address.
improvements in emergency response and medical technologies Approximately 35 percent of fatalities and 66 percent of injures
have increased crash survival rates.7 region wide are the result of vehicles colliding into one another.
Forty-eight percent of fatal crashes, however, are the result of
drivers losing control and hitting fixed objects such as guard
Figure 3-11
rails, signs, light posts, trees, or abutments on the roadway or
Fatality Trends 1995-2005
running off the road. Most countermeasures that are being
implemented in the St. Louis region and around the country are
aimed at either improving driver behavior through education,
enforcement, and tougher laws to improve driver behavior or
enhancing the existing system to compensate for driver error.
Installing cable barriers between divided Interstates to decrease
the number of crossover head-on collisions, striping lanes with
bright reflective paints to improve visibility, installing rumble
strips down the centerline of highways and along shoulders to
alert weaving drivers and increase awareness, and eliminating
pavement drop-offs at the edge of the roadway so drivers can
safely correct their driving if they run off the road have all been
shown to be very cost-effective solutions that improve safety.9
Many of these strategies are being implemented in the St. Louis
region.
7 Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, Stuck in Neutral: Recommendations for Shifting the
Highway and Auto Safety Agenda into High Gear, September 16, 1999.; 2005 Traffic Safety Facts 8 IBID
Annual Report, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, January 2004.; Robert B. Noland,
Traffic Fatalities and Injuries: Are Reductions the Result of Improvements in Highway Design 9 Countermeasures That Work: A Highway Safety Countermeasure Guide for State Highway Safety
Standards?, presented at Transportation Research Board annual meeting, November 2000. Offices, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, DOT HS 810 710, January 2007.
Figure 3-12
Map
Fatal Crashes - 2000-2005
Figure 3-12 provides a good graphic depiction of the magnitude Louis and St. Charles counties were the only counties that actu-
of the problem. Every county in the region is affected, yet each ally had an increase in the number of fatalities resulting from
area faces unique safety challenges. Rural counties including motor vehicle crashes where alcohol was involved. Crashes
Franklin, Jefferson and Monroe counties, where fewer people involving people not wearing seat belts have decreased in
live and work, have the highest rate of fatalities relative to pop- Illinois by 26 percent and in Missouri by 16 percent. This has
ulation. Most travel is concentrated on two lane rural highways resulted in 13 percent fewer fatalities and 22 percent fewer
where traffic is minimal, speeds are high, visibility and site dis- injuries in Illinois, and 3 percent fewer fatalities and 13 percent
tances are often low, and shoulders are less common, leaving fewer injuries in Missouri.
little room for mistakes. Responding to crashes is also a factor
in these areas, due to longer distances and fewer observers to
alert emergency responders when a crash does occur. Figure 3-13
Fatality Rates
The highest number of fatalities and injuries is concentrated in
the City of St. Louis and St. Louis County. Fatality rates are
lower, however, because the total number of fatalities is relative-
ly small compared to the density of population and travel the
region’s core. The highest rate of injuries related to motor vehi-
cle crashes is in the City of St. Louis. It is important to note that
in contrast to the more rural counties, most injuries in St. Louis
City and County are non-disabling due to lower travel speeds.
Walking and bicycling is more common in the City of St. Louis

and St. Louis County, which creates a particular safety challenge
in these areas. Though it is rare that drivers strike bicyclists and
pedestrians, when they do the outcome is usually severe.
Between 2001 and 2005, pedestrians were involved in less than
one percent of the total crashes, but accounted for 11 percent
Source: Missouri Highway Patrol and IDOT
of fatalities. Of these fatalities, over 60 percent occurred in the * Based on annual average fatalities between 2000 and 2005.
City of St. Louis and St. Louis County. Recent efforts in St. Louis
have been aimed at improving safety for pedestrians and bicy-
clers.
A number of safety initiatives have focused on reducing the use

of alcohol and increasing safety belt usage through driver edu-
cation and awareness campaigns combined with strategic
enforcement efforts. The good news is that data is showing
improvements. Data gathered from 2003 to 2005 shows an
overall decline of about 15 percent in fatalities and 24 percent
in injures resulting from alcohol-related crashes regionally. St.
Despite progress in reducing fatalities and injuries over time, Figure 3-14
improving safety outcomes will always remain an arduous chal- Injury Rates
lenge for the region. Continuing to reduce the number of fatal-
ities and disabling injuries associated with motor vehicle crashes
will depend on how well drivers respond to education and
enforcement efforts. Two factors that may impede progress
relate to demographic trends—aging baby boomers and a
growing number of young people reaching driving age.
In 2000, 14 percent of drivers were 65 and older, by 2035 that

proportion will grow to at least 23 percent. As drivers age, their
mental and physical abilities diminish, and driving behavior and
crash risks change. Older Americans are increasingly dependent
upon driving to maintain their mobility, life-styles, and health.
The challenge will be to balance mobility for older drivers with
safety for all drivers on the road. Source: Missouri Highway Patrol and IDOT
* Based on annual average injuries 2000-2005.
Young drivers also have unique needs for two primary rea-
sons. First, young drivers lack experience necessary to
respond to unknown circumstances that will inevitably Table 3-5
occur. Second, they are immature, often engaging in risky Disabling Injuries by County
behaviors, without the ability or willingness to think ahead
about the potential consequences of those risky behav- County Disabling Non-Disabling Percent of Injuries as
iors.10 Injuries Injuries Disabling
St. Louis City 860 18,203 4.5%

St. Louis 2,415 28,971 7.7
St. Charles 922 7,376 11.1%
St. Clair 909 4,482 16.9
Madison 920 4,063 18.5
Jefferson 1,457 5,994 19.6
Monroe 102 361 22.0%
Franklin 850 2,855 22.9%
Region 8,435 72,305 11.7
Source: MoDot (Average 2003-2005), IDOT (Average 2004-2005), US Census
10 Countermeasures That Work: A Highway Safety Countermeasure Guide for State Highway
Safety Offices, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, DOT HS 810 710, January
2007
Transit Regional Security
Safety and security is a critical element of the public transit sys- Our region’s economy relies heavily on the multi-modal trans-
tem as well. Although buses operate within roadways, and are portation system. The region’s central location within the
exposed to the same vulnerabilities associated with highway nation, and its geography and topography have defined much
travel, it is rare that buses are involved in motor vehicle crashes. of the way the region has developed both in terms of trans-
Between 2001 and 2003, there was an annual average of 534 portation and industry. St. Louis is a major transportation hub
incidents involving Metro buses, paratransit vans and the with two navigable rivers (the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers),
Metrolink, including collision and non-collision incidents. four Interstate highways, an international airport, and four
Relative to the thousands of riders that used the system during major railroads, all of which are central to supporting the
that time, the risk of being involved in a crash while using pub- region’s economy through the movement of goods, services,
lic transit is extremely low compared to using a private vehicle. and people. Many national corporations have major operations
During that three-year period, there was only one fatality on the located in the region, including Boeing, Monsanto, MasterCard,
transit system. Injuries are more common, although still Anheuser-Busch, Enterprise Rent-a-Car, Sabreliner Corp., AT&T,
extremely low in comparison to auto travel. Many injuries occur A. G. Edwards, Edward Jones, Emerson Electric, and Vi-Jon
at stations and stops, when users are traversing parking lots Laboratories, Inc. All rely heavily upon the region’s transporta-
and boarding and alighting transit vehicles. Transit users must tion system to support everyday business needs. Due to the
access the system on foot, yet many of our communities have natural amenities found within the region St. Louis also has a
not placed much effort on creating a safe environment for large share of chemical plants and oil and gas refineries, many
pedestrians to access stops. of which are positioned close to the river to meet their industri-
al needs for water and transport. These combined with the rail
Crime and security are the two primary safety issues associated and highway transport of chemicals and hazardous materials
with public transit. Feeling safe and secure on and around the make St. Louis vulnerable to a toxic chemical release, whether
transit system is a predominant factor that influences the use of intentional or accidental.
the system. Many factors determine whether or not people ride
public transit, however, if an individual does not feel safe on the While surface transportation infrastructure has been targeted by
transit system or at the stops and stations, it deters potential terrorists in the United States and worldwide, there is also a sig-
riders from utilizing the system. Most incidents involving buses nificant risk of accidents or natural disasters impairing the trans-
or light rail involve minor offenses such as fare evasion (92 per- portation system. The need for evacuation routes out of
cent), or other less common crimes such as theft and assault. Washington D.C. on 9/11 and from the Gulf Coast region during
An annual average 3,691 arrests were made between 2001 and the 2005 hurricane season sharply illustrated the need for evac-
2003, amounting to one arrest for every 9,063 transit riders. uation planning. In the San Francisco Bay area, the 1989 Loma
Continuing to improve safety and security on and around the Prieta earthquake and the accidental tanker explosion in 2007
region’s transit system will be critical to its success in attracting also point out the need for planning and redundancy. The St.
new riders and maintaining its current ridership levels. Metro is Louis region lies along the New Madrid seismic zone, where sci-
working to address safety issues, and is dedicated to continuing entists predict the probability of a moderate or greater earth-
their efforts to improve safety and security on the transit in the quake in the near future is high. Whether caused by intentional
future. acts or natural events, large-scale incidents can wreak havoc on
a region’s transportation infrastructure and economy.
The political complexity and fragmentation of the St. Louis Past Actions and Future Direction
region at the local government level pose challenges to regional
collaboration on coordinated security response. While there has Transportation Safety
been improvement since 9/11, more work needs to be done.
Another challenge is the institutional resistance to changing the Recognizing the broad impact that motor vehicle crashes have
way things have been done in the past, separately by each on the region, and the complex and diverse nature of the safety
agency or one discipline. Private hospitals historically have not problems, the Council embarked on a Regional Safety Initiative
been connected to law enforcement or even the public health in 2004 with the goal of saving lives and reducing injuries in the
system. This is changing gradually. region. This effort included a citizen driven multi-media cam-
paign aimed at raising awareness of the importance of staying
The collaboration required to compete for urban area homeland alert and paying attention while driving. The primary message
security funding has begun to change the way institutions do of the campaign was “Someone’s future is in your hands.” The
business. In recent years multi disciplinary committees have Council partnered with the American Automobile Association
come together to plan for a coordinated response to large-scale (AAA) and Monsanto to get the message out using television
incidents. Widespread windstorms and accompanying power media. Various print media and radio stations were utilized as
outages in the St. Louis area during 2006 gave area emergency well, and 5, 000 posters were produced and distributed region-
responders a chance to work together as the events were seri- ally. The Council also held a Regional Safety Conference to
ous enough to require a regional response. Although not cata- bring experts on safety to raise awareness about transportation
strophic, the events showed the importance of planning and safety issues, and to share best practices relative to the four
collaboration. The adoption of a regional coordinated emer- “E’s” of transportation safety: Engineering, Enforcement,
gency response plan will formalize the informal working rela- Education, and Emergency Response. The conference was a
tionships that have developed during the last several years success with 175 individuals in attendance representing a
through planning and occasional real life practice. diverse number of organizations, agencies, and local govern-
ments.
A Regional Travelsafe Communities Congress was also organized

at that time to manage the development and implementation of
regional safety strategies over the long-term. Local govern-
ments were asked to voluntarily participate by appointing dele-
gates to the Congress from their communities. To date, dele-
gates representing over 40 municipalities have participated. The
Congress is convened periodically to assist in developing strate-
gies to address engineering, enforcement, education, and emer-
gency response.
Both Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) and the

Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) have also made
safety a statewide priority. In November 2004, MoDOT issued a
Blueprint for Safer Roadways. The Blueprint serves as a guide
to increase coordination, communication, and cooperation all TravelSafe Zones along corridors with high crash rates, and
among state and local agencies, law enforcement, planning the installation of cable barriers along Interstate highways to
organizations, non-profit organizations, and other safety advo- reduce crossover collision. All of the regional safety plan activi-
cates throughout the State. The Blueprint calls for action on ties are planned by the regional Coalition for Roadway Safety, a
eight basic strategies identified through extensive data analysis, diverse group comprised of citizens, law enforcement agencies,
current research findings, and best practices. The eight strate- schools, local government and the private sector. East-West
gies are: Gateway is working closely with the Coalition and representa-
tives of MoDOT to implement goals of reducing fatalities on our
• Pass a Primary Safety Belt Law and Maintain and Enhance region’s roadways. Current educational activities supported by
Existing Safety Laws Missouri Blueprint funding distributed through the Coalition
include: Education teenage drivers about the TravelSafe zones
• Increase Enforcement on Targeted Crash Corridors and safety belt use through mass media, Community outreach
to teenage drivers through the Reaching Adolescent Drivers
• Increase Public Education and Information on Traffic Safety (RAD) program at Lindbergh High School and through meetings
Issues and education at other area high schools, surveying safety belt
usage by high school students through the Orchard Farm High
• Expand the Installation of Shoulder, Edgeline, and Centerline School Safety Belt program, TravelSafe Zone educational materi-
Rumble Strips als and information, and CRASH! The Science of Collisions!
educational teaching materials.
• Expand, Improve, and Maintain Roadway Visibility Features
(pavement markings, signs, lighting, etc.) The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) is also empha-
sizing safety and has set saving lives as its highest priority. In
• Expand Installation of Median Three Strand Cable or November 2004, IDOT created the Bureau of Safety Engineering
Equivalent Barrier in the Division of Highways in an effort to be more proactive in
detecting trends, monitoring unsafe highway conditions, and
• Effectively Deter, Identify, Arrest, and Adjudicate Alcohol and developing engineering solutions for identified safety problems.
Other Drug Impaired Drivers and Pedestrians
IDOT completed the development of their Statewide
• Expand Installation and Maintenance of Roadway Shoulders Comprehensive Highway Safety Plan (CHSP) in September 2005.
and Clear Zones The CHSP identifies ten emphasis areas for improving highway
safety including:
The goal of the Missouri Blueprint is to reduce the annual num-
ber of fatalities in the state by 200, or 18.8 percent, by 2008. • Alcohol and other impaired driving
The Blueprint required that each MoDOT district develop a
regional safety plan to address targeted crash problems in their • Driving behavior and awareness
respective areas. The Council worked with MoDOT to create a
regional safety plan for the Missouri portion of the St. Louis • Highway railroad crossings
region that addresses those eight strategies as well as other
local safety problems. This plan included the establishment of • Information systems for decision-making
• Intersections Regional Transportation Security
• Large trucks Although 9/11 brought emergency response to the forefront

through the media coverage it received, planning and prepared-
• Roadway departure ness for large-scale incidents had been underway for many
years. From the days of bomb shelters and “duck and cover”
• Seat belts and occupant protection campaigns of the early 1960’s to 9/11 and more recent transit
attacks in Tokyo, Madrid and London, emergency management
• Vulnerable users (pedestrians and bicyclists) planners have been thinking about regional safety for some
time. The St. Louis region for example, experienced significant
• Work zones flooding of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers in 1993 requiring
local governments, first responders, health departments and cit-
IDOT launched this effort on March 7, 2005, holding its first izens to respond. Highways were closed and alternative routes
Safety Summit where major safety stakeholders came together were developed by emergency managers in collaboration with
to identify what is needed for the successful development, both Missouri and Illinois Departments of Transportation. In
implementation, and maintenance of an Illinois CHSP. In July, some cases emergency response agencies had to evacuate sig-
2006, IDOT held its Second Annual Safety Summit to discuss nificant sections of business and residential areas to protect the
challenges. Strategies were developed for each emphasis area. population.
As part of this outreach effort, representatives from East-West In 2003 with the introduction of the Urban Areas Security
Gateway were invited to attend the Illinois Safety Summit and Initiative under the Department of Homeland Security, the St.
provide their input. Implementation teams have been formed Louis region created a non-profit organization called The St.
for six of the ten emphasis areas including highway/railroad Louis Area Regional Response System (“STARRS”) to plan how to
grade crossing safety, information systems for decision-making, prepare for large-scale critical incidents. STARRS entered into a
intersection safety, roadway departure, and work zone safety. fiscal agreement East-West Gateway to handle the fiscal respon-
The teams will develop detailed action plans, including specific sibilities of the grant funding that began to come in to the area
processes to implement recommended strategies. Since the for regional preparedness. Today, the affiliation between
adoption of the CHSP, Illinois has seen traffic deaths fall below STARRS and East-West Gateway permits collaboration and coor-
1,300 for the first time since 1924. Similar to MoDOT’s dination on regional security planning to mirror that for trans-
Blueprint, the primary goal of the CHSP is to reduce fatalities on portation planning. The inter-government coordination promot-
Illinois roadways to 1,000 by 2008. ed by the MPO is vitally important to allow for a coordinated
response in the public safety arena.
The Council is committed to working with MoDOT, IDOT and
other regional stakeholders to create a regional transportation STARRS is governed by a 20 member multi jurisdictional and
safety plan that identifies strategies for addressing their com- multi disciplinary Board of Directors. STARRS has also estab-
mon areas of emphasis, as well as other local safety problems. lished a 25 member Advisory Council to advise the STARRS
Board and to oversee various working committees.
Among the committees are Hospital Preparedness, First
Responders, Public Health, and Critical Infrastructure. The
Critical Infrastructure committee is charged with the
responsibility of preparing an inventory of regional infrastruc- hospitals. The second program is a virtual emergency operation
ture and a plan for preventing and limiting damage. The center that permits area emergency operations centers and
Missouri Department of Transportation actively participates in other key agencies, including transportation centers and hospi-
STARRS by having a District Engineer sit on the Board of tals, from their own locations, to view an incident, manage it
Directors. MoDOT and IDOT are linked through traditional and share resources.
working relationships with emergency operations centers that
have existed for many years. Metro, the region’s transit agency The most pressing needs for planners in regional transportation
also has staff that serves on various committees and participate security today are to develop regionally coordinated evacuation
in security planning. STARRS staff manages all regional home- plans and to analyze and strengthen redundancies in the sys-
land security funding coming to the region, allowing a central- tem. In the past, evacuation plans have been developed on a
ized coordinated plan that minimizes duplication and inconsis- county-by-county basis, with little attention paid to a large-scale
tency. evacuation of the region. The recent hurricanes in the Gulf
Coast region and the increased attention being paid to the
All of the programs funded through STARRS that help to potential for a large-scale terrorist strike have created a sense of
improve the region’s readiness to respond to a major incident urgency about evacuation planning. While hurricanes will not
help improve safety on the region’s roads, some directly and occur in the Midwest, floods, tornadoes, earthquake and terror-
some indirectly. For example, improvements to interoperable ism are risks that might call for an evacuation. In the St. Louis
communications methods and equipment will enable more effi- region, with so many highways and major arterials crossing
cient management of incidents and permit more rapid clearing bridges, a significant amount of planning is required.
of incidents off the roads by law enforcement and emergency Related to the needs for evacuation planning is the need for
medical service (EMS) responders. STARRS’ medical communica- redundancy. A system wide analysis of redundancies needs to
tions center is housed at MoDOT’s Transportation Management be undertaken to identify alternate systems and routes to be
Center. In the event of an emergency, STARRS’ staff activates used when the first choice becomes unavailable. Evaluation of
the medical communications center to support and coordinate the role of transit, by bus and light rail should be included, with
communications among hospitals, EMS, public health and emer- scenarios illustrating the loss of part of the transit system.
gency managers as needed. STARRS’ presence at the MoDOT
facility is intended to foster closer ties between traditional emer- STARRS is in the process of developing an overarching regional
gency response planning and transportation system manage- emergency coordination plan that will encompass evacuation
ment. planning, formal agreements on resource sharing, and protocols
on how equipment will be deployed and used. The roles of
Two of STARRS’ current programs in particular relate directly to Metro, MoDOT and IDOT need to be strengthened within the
improving safety on the region’s roads. One is the emergency STARRS planning process because their expertise is essential to
patient tracking system that helps to track patients in mass the development of a comprehensive regional security plan.
casualty incidents from the field to the EMS vehicle to the hos-
pital. Information about individual patients is entered into a
hand held device in the field, and transmitted to a secure web
based information sharing site that can be accessed by hospi-
tals, ambulances and incident commanders. This allows more
efficient use of ambulances, safer routes and load balancing for
The following strategies will guide future Council efforts in

the area of regional safety and security:
• Work with partners to implement a systematic plan to

improve regional transportation safety, focusing on engineer-
ing, education, enforcement and emergency response while
integrating the IDOT and MoDOT comprehensive safety plans
• Promote education and advertising strategies to change

unsafe driving behavior
• Invest in cost-effective safety improvements to eliminate sub-

standard conditions in high crash locations and corridors
• Develop a training program to assist communities in solving

local transportation safety problems
• Develop a Regional Emergency Coordination Plan that articu-

lates policies and procedures for resource sharing and cooper-
ative response to large scale multi-jurisdictional emergency
incidents, including evacuation plans
• Maintain a medical communications center to support and

coordinate communications among hospitals, EMS, public
health and emergency managers as needed
• Support emergency patient tracking system to identify and

track patients from the field to the hospital, permitting more
efficient use of EMS resources, and balancing patient loads at
area hospitals
• Support a Terrorist Early Warning Center to coordinate detec-

tion and prevention of intentional criminal acts and to main-
tain inventory and plan for protection of critical infrastructure
CONGESTION MANAGEMENT about where they live and work, that businesses evaluate in
making location decisions, and that shippers and receivers rely
Overview on to schedule freight movements.
Highway congestion is one of the more visible indicators of While recurring congestion increases business costs and dimin-
transportation system performance. Hundreds of thousands of ishes quality of life by robbing people of time that could be put
St. Louisans experience the daily frustration of being stuck in to more productive or meaningful uses, businesses and people
traffic during morning and evening commutes. But the effects usually can adapt to it without extreme consequences. What is
of congestion go far beyond mere frustration; they affect quali- more difficult and costly to adapt to is the unreliability of the
ty of life and carry a significant economic cost. highway system. A trip that takes 35 minutes one day and an
hour and 15 minutes the next creates more than frustration.
The evident cause of congestion is too many vehicles trying to Unreliability compels individuals to build a cushion into their
occupy the same roadway space at the same time. Less obvious, travel times and devote more time than may always be neces-
however, are the underlying causes. Changes in the economy, sary to make a trip, further reducing the time people have avail-
with the transition from a manufacturing to a service base and able for family, recreation, or work. It requires freight carriers to
a greater reliance on low inventories and just-in-time deliveries, cover more overtime pay and vehicle operating costs, as well as
translates into a greater dependence on trucks for moving forcing them to build inefficiencies into their scheduling and
freight and thus increased travel. Changes in demographics, operations to avoid delivery delays. Because of modern invento-
with more women in the labor force, a greater reliance on child ry management practices, delayed shipments can stop industrial
care outside the home, more younger people requiring (or desir- production.
ing) vehicles for school or work trips, and a healthier, more
active senior population, have increased the number of trips The lack of reliability is associated largely with non-recurring
made. Changes in the regional distribution of economic activi- congestion. Studies show that only about 40 percent of conges-
ties and population, with the resulting spatial separation of tion is caused by recurring demand, where limited roadway
jobs, stores, medical facilities, and schools from the places space is overwhelmed by traffic on a daily basis. The other sixty
where people live, have increased travel and made those travel percent of congestion is caused by non-recurring events that are
needs difficult to meet by any mode other than the automobile. relatively unpredictable, such as crashes, bad weather, vehicle
Finally, the lack of real transportation options in significant por- breakdowns, work zones, or special events.11 Nationally, 25 per-
tions of the region simply exacerbates congestion by increasing cent of congestion is caused by traffic incidents alone.12 Non-
reliance on the automobile. recurring events can significantly reduce the amount of roadway
capacity available to keep travelers moving, making travel times
Congestion is both recurring and non-recurring. Recurring is the unpredictable and ultimately reducing the reliability of the
typical day-to-day congestion that people and businesses antici- entire transportation system.
pate in scheduling daily activities. Although recurring conges-
tion increases trip times and delay compared to travel in non-
congested periods, its impacts are predictable. Recurring con-
gestion does impose costs, but those costs, being predictable,
11 Traffic Congestion and Mobility: Linking Solutions to Problems, Prepared for FHWA by Cambridge
become part of the equation that people use in making choices Systematics with Texas Transportation Institute, July 19, 2004.
12 David Schrank and Tim Lomax, 2004 Urban Mobility Report, Texas Transportation Institute,
September 2004.
Efforts to ease congestion have focused primarily on expanding many of its midwestern peers including Detroit and Indianapolis
road capacity. Growth in traffic has, however, exceeded the rate on this measure. This data implies that congestion in St. Louis
of capacity expansion. Given that funds are limited, that it is is relatively low in comparison to other metropolitan areas
increasingly difficult to add lanes or build new roads, and that across the country.
adding capacity tends to stimulate traffic growth and, there-
fore, often provides only temporary congestion relief, building Figure 3-16 illustrates the growth in delay in St. Louis area
enough roadway capacity to eliminate congestion is infeasible. between 1982 and 2003. Over that twenty-year period delays
While capacity expansion does moderate the effects of recurring grew significantly, at a rate of 11.9 percent, though recent years
congestion, at least for a time, it has less effect on non-recur- are showing a decreasing trend. This rate of change is com-
ring congestion. Non-recurring congestion is best addressed pares quite favorably to the other 34 metropolitan areas, with
through management of the existing road system. St. Louis ranking 29th . The top seven ranking metros experi-
enced more than 30 percent growth in delay during the same
Analysis period.
Congestion will always be challenge for the St. Louis region. All Despite our region’s relatively low level of congestion compared
large metropolitan areas are experiencing it. Congestion is an to other metropolitan areas, residents face congestion daily, and
outcome of how metropolitan areas in the U.S. have developed it is perceived as a significant problem. To fully understand the
over time. To understand how severe the congestion problem is extent of the congestion problems in St. Louis, it is important to
in the St. Louis area, it is useful to compare the region to other assess both the traffic conditions on the roadway facilities and
metropolitan areas around the country. The 2005 Urban most importantly the impacts that congestion has on travelers
Mobility Study, published by the Texas Transportation Institute, in the region.
measures congestion trends and associated impacts for metro-
politan areas in the United States. According to this report, the To gain insight into the extent and intensity of traffic congestion
average peak hour traveler in St. Louis spent an additional 35 in the St. Louis region, the Council commissioned aerial surveys
hours on the highway due to delay in 2003, which translated of traffic conditions on many of the region’s major roadways in
into $556 in wasted time and fuel. With rising fuel costs, and Spring of 2000.13 Figures 3-17 and 3-18 (skycomp maps) illus-
busier and busier schedules this is a significant impact on driv- trate congestions levels in the spring of 2000 for the morning
ers that should not be ignored. (6:00-9:00 am) and evening (3:30-6:30 pm) peak traffic periods.
A comparison of the two peakperiods clearly showed heavier
The Institute has developed a method for measuring the severity congestion during the evening peak period. In the morning, the
of congestion among metropolitan areas—the Travel Time Index most severe congestion was along I-64 in the Chesterfield
(TTI). This index is a measure of the amount of extra time it Valley, and east of US 67 and I-170 interchanges. Other areas
takes to make a trip during peak travel times compared to trav- that experienced severe congestion during the morning peak
eling at free flow speeds. As figure 3-15 illustrates, the St. Louis period were found along I-270 north of I-44, and along east-
region ranked 25th among its peer metros, with a TTI value of bound I-70 east of MO 79. With the exception of the west-
1.22. This means that for a 20 minute trip travelers can expect bound approach to the Poplar Street Bridge, there was no recur-
to travel an additional 4.4 minutes, a 22 percent increase in ring congestion on the Interstate system in Illinois.
travel time due to delay from congestion. St. Louis ranks well
below metros such as Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, and even 13 Skycomp, Inc., Traffic Quality on the St. Louis Regional Highway System, prepared for the East-
West Gateway Coordinating Council, Spring 2000.
Figure 3-15 In the evening, the worst congestion was found to be in many
of the same areas. Congestion was worse than in the morning
period along the I-64 corridor in the Chesterfield valley, at the
Missouri River Bridge, and at the I-170 interchange, where
severe congestion persists in both directions. Severe congestion
existed on MO 141, MO 340, MO 100, and a northbound sec-
tion of US 67 at I-270. Congestion was a bit heavier on the
Illinois side of the region in the evening peak period. Heavy to
moderate congestion emerged in the evening peak period along
Route 159 at I-64 and north of I-70. The only severe congestion
in Illinois was on southbound IL Route 3, but that congestion
was related to a construction project at the time, as opposed to
traffic demand.
Figure 3-16
Travel Time Index 1982-2003
Source: Texas Transportation Institute, 2005

Figure 3-17
Map
Highway Congestion
Morning Peak Period
Legacy 2035 Transportation Investment Plan 47
Figure 3-18
Map
Highway Congestion
Evening Peak Period
Although the study is dated, the aerial survey provided a useful calculates delay as the difference between uncongested and
benchmark for establishing a performance baseline and under- congested travel times. As the model illustrates (see Figures 3-
standing of where recurring congestion problems persist in the 19 and 3-20 - delay maps) the degree of congestion travelers
region. With a few exceptions, most portions of the highway experience depends more upon where people live, and less
system experiencing severe congestion at the time of the survey upon where people going.
are still heavily congested today during the peak periods.
Even though the Interstates and principal arterials comprise only Delays tend to be worse for travelers living in an area of the
a small portion of the overall lane miles of roadways in the region that requires them to traverse a major river crossing to
region, they carry 67 percent of the region’s vehicle miles trav- reach their destinations. This is particularly apparent in Illinois
eled. Congestion that occurs on that portion of the system can portion of the region, northern Jefferson County, and to a lesser
have a tremendous impact on Interstate travel, but it also con- degree in St. Charles County, where a majority of workers com-
tributes to congestion on arterial roadways and other connect- mute outside their county to work.
ing local roads that lead into and from our communities. Traffic
analysis using the region’s travel simulation model shows that It should be noted, however, that measuring delay as a percent-
during the peak period, when heaviest congestion exists, age of travel time to make a trip can exaggerate the impact to
only seven percent of the region’s roads are heavily congested.14 travelers when travel times are fairly short. In East St. Louis, for
As a result, only 13 percent of vehicle miles traveled, and 21 example, where a majority of morning trips are destined for
percent of vehicle hours of travel, occur on congested portions Missouri, delay comprises 50% of their overall travel time, yet a
of the system during that peak period. Forecasting travel condi- majority of the trips coming from this area average only 10 to
tions out to 2035, congestion levels rise moderately from seven 20 minutes total. Although the delays add to the travel time for
to10 percent of the system for the evening peak period. trips originating in this area, a 5 to 10 minute delay is a minimal
Although it is a moderate rise in congestion overall, travel under impact to drivers.
heavily congested conditions is expected to rise significantly to
30 percent of vehicle miles of travel, and 33 percent of vehicle Some areas showing higher delays in the outlying portions of
hours of travel for that period. Forecasting travel conditions to the region are also experiencing less delay than the map por-
2035, assuming a full implementation of the plan, only eight trays when the characteristics are examined closer. In areas
percent of the system would be heavily congested during the such as Alton or Waterloo, few residents in those areas make
evening peak period. This only reduces the amount of travel trips to destinations across the Mississippi, yet the delay those
under heavily congested conditions moderately, however, to 28 travelers crossing the river experience can be significant, which
percent and 29 percent of vehicle miles traveled and vehicle skews the average delays experienced by travelers in those
hours traveled respectively for that period of the day. areas. In Alton, for example, only 20 percent of the trips from
that area are destined for Missouri, but over 90 percent of the
The effect of congestion upon travelers in the region varies sig- delay is associated with trips crossing the river. The same is true
nificantly depending upon where people live and where they are in the Waterloo area, where 80 percent of the delay is incurred
traveling. To gauge the effects congestion has on travelers it is by the 20 percent of the trips that are destined for Missouri.
useful to evaluate, using the region’s travel simulation model,
the percent of delay associated with trips originating in or des-
tined for different parts of the region. For every trip the model
14 Heavy congestion is defined as roadway segments where volume to capacity ratio of 0.75 or
greater.
Figure 3-19
Map
Peak Hour Highway Travel Delay
By Trip Origin
Figure 3-20
Map
Peak Hour Highway Travel Delay
By Trip Destination
Areas with relatively low delays at the origin end of their trip Even in the absence of river crossings, longer trips originating
tend to be either within the most urbanized areas where trip from southwestern portions of St. Louis, Franklin, and northern
lengths tend to be shorter and multiple parallel routes are avail- Jefferson counties are experiencing delays comprising 20-30 per-
able, or in outlying areas of the region where commuter trips to cent of their travel time. Many of these travelers depend upon
the urban core are minimal. I-44, MO 100, and MO 30 to reach I-270, where congestion is
severe during the peak period, particularly at the I-44 / I-270
St. Charles County also has areas where delay at the origin end interchange.
of the trip can be attributed to river crossings, although to a
lesser degree than those crossing the Mississippi River from The Council has been working closely with MoDOT and IDOT
Illinois. Recent extensions to Page Avenue (MO 364 Bridge) over the last decade to improve collection of information about
have reduced much of the delay previously experienced by trav- regional traffic conditions using new technologies such as GPS
elers coming from that area. and intelligent transportation systems (ITS) infrastructure. One
new element of the region’s ITS is a new traffic surveillance
system, which collects data on traffic conditions, such as
volumes, speeds, construction, and incidents, on minute-by-
Figure 3-21 minute basis, twenty-four hours a day. The data is collected
Delay as Percent of Total Travel Time
Source: Traffic.com
and managed by Traffic.com, which also integrates the informa- Hourly speed data for the segments with highest delay along I-64
tion into a website that travelers can use to plan their trips and corridor are shown over a 24-hour period in Figures 3-22 and 3-
which planners can access to gather detailed traffic data. The 23. The data show the magnitude and duration of speed reduc-
Traffic.com infrastructure continues to be under development, tion as a result of congestion and incidents. This type of detailed
and currently covers portions I-64, I-55, I-44, and I-170. When data will greatly improve our region’s ability to analyze traffic
complete, the system will be expanded to cover all major corri- conditions and be more strategic about transportation invest-
dors in both the Missouri and Illinois portions of the region. ments.
The information collected by Traffic.com will provide a rich set
of data to enhance the analysis of traffic conditions, to identify
the extent of non-recurring congestion and to identify hot spots
of recurring congestion, and to evaluate the system-wide
impacts and effectiveness of various transportation improve-
ments over time.
Traffic analysts are using the Traffic.com data to examine condi-

tions along corridors where data is collected. The fol-
lowing figures show an example of the data evaluated Figure 3-22
for I-64 between I-270 and the Poplar Street Bridge. I-64 Average Hourly Speeds
Figure 3-21 shows delay along the corridor for both Eastbound Between I-270 and I-170
morning and evening peak periods. Delay is measured
as the difference in the amount of time it takes to travel
a given distance during off-peak hours of operation as
compared to peak hours.15 Information used to calcu-
late delay was taken from observed data on a typical
day, Wednesday, September 27, 2006. During the
morning peak period, the highest delays were observed
traveling eastbound -64 between I-270 and I-170.
During the evening period the highest delays were
observed traveling westbound between Vandeventer
Ave. and I-170. The cause of delay was in part recurring
congestion but also morning traffic incidents between I-
270 and I-170. A log of incident data is also available
showing time, location, and severity.
Source: Traffic.com
15 The hours of 6:30 - 8:00 am were used for the morning peak hours of operation,
4:30 - 6:00 pm for the evening peak hours of operation, and 9:30-11:00 pm for the
off-peak hours of operation
Figure 3-23 Past Actions and Future Directions

I-64 Average Hourly Speeds
Westbound Between Vandeventer and I-170 The opportunity to manage the use of the transporta-
tion network in new ways has never been better, nor has
70.00 the need ever been greater. Growing evidence from
around the country indicates that metropolitan areas,
60.00 including St. Louis, simply cannot build enough roads
eliminate congestion. This is not to say that system
50.00 development is not an important part of the region’s
long-range investment strategy, but this rather suggests
40.00
that metropolitan areas must be more innovative in
developing strategies to reduce congestion and improve
Speed
mobility and safety on area roads.

30.00
The recognition of that fact is made in SAFETEA-LU

20.00 through the requirement that metropolitan planning
areas develop and integrate into their planning process-
10.00 es a Congestion Management Process (CMP). The CMP
is a broad, region-level planning tool designed to help
0.00 manage congestion by identifying congested corridors
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 and recommending multi-modal strategies for conges-
Hour
tion mitigation. The Congestion Management Process in
Source: Traffic.com
the St. Louis region will include a coordinated program
for data collection and system evaluation that will define
Improving regional conditions is going to require a more com- the extent and duration of congestion. The CMP will include a
prehensive strategy than simply adding capacity, as the solution monitoring program that measures travel time and delay on sig-
had been in years past. Analysis shows that congestion is con- nificant regional corridors that currently experience congestion
tinuing to persist, despite a full build out of the plan, and or serve growth areas that are likely to experience future con-
despite considerable investment in transportation improve- gestion.
ments. Although there will be times when adding capacity will
be necessary to resolve congestion issues, improving traffic con- Development of the CMP is underway and the Council will con-
ditions will require further development of the region’s ITS and tinue to work closely with MoDOT, IDOT, Metro, and other agen-
innovative operational strategies to obtain greater efficiencies cies in the region to improve collection of information about
out of the existing system. regional traffic conditions using new technologies such as GPS
and intelligent transportation systems (ITS) infrastructure.
The new technology and data that are becoming available will Additionally, through the development of the Regional Arterial
provide a basis for working together with MoDOT, IDOT, and Management System, discussed later in this section, similar data
METRO and other regional stakeholders to establish a compre- will be collected and integrated into the planning process.
hensive process for managing congestion.
Advanced technologies, such as Intelligent Transportation Although substantial progress has been made towards deploy-
Systems (ITS), have created new options for transportation ing ITS technologies throughout the region, full deployment will
agencies to more effectively manage the performance of the take many years to complete. Although the region’s ITS is still a
existing transportation system—minimizing the effects of con- work in progress, it is a critical component of Legacy 2035. The
gestion on travelers, while at the same time improving safety, primary components of the region’s ITS strategy are a freeway
reliability, and mobility. ITS planning in St. Louis began in 1994 management system (Gateway Guide), an arterial management
with the completion of the ITS Early Deployment Study. This system, and a transit management system. A brief description
study included the Strategic Deployment Plan, which identified of each component follows.
a regional strategy for integrating ITS into the transportation
system. The region’s Strategic Deployment Plan was developed Freeway Management System
cooperatively between MoDOT, IDOT, Metro, and the Council.
Other partners included emergency responders, municipal gov- The region’s freeway management system is referred to as the
ernments, and private sector media. Since that time the region Gateway Guide. By utilizing communications and advanced
has invested $83 million towards the development of ITS. technologies, the Gateway Guide helps to facilitate more effi-
cient travel and improve safety for area travelers. The central
Momentum for the development and integration of ITS technolo- hub of the Gateway Guide communication network is MoDOT’s
gies was created by ISTEA, which provided funding for surface Transportation Management Center (TMC). This center is used
transportation and other related projects, such as ITS, that reduce as a command post for collecting information on traffic condi-
congestion and contribute to air quality improvements. That tions and relaying that information back to the general public.
momentum continued through TEA-21 with the requirement to The initial coverage of the Gateway Guide includes all major
develop and integrate a regional ITS strategy and architecture Interstates throughout the St. Louis region. Once complete, the
into the metropolitan planning process. This architecture defines Gateway Guide will include 42 detector stations (used to collect
key institutional partners, agreements between partners, equip- travel speeds and volumes), 22 Closed Circuit Television Cameras
ment and process standards, and a sequence for integrating ITS (CCTV), Highway Advisory Radios (HAR), 13 Dynamic Message
technologies into the transportation system. The Council has Signs (DMS), emergency call boxes, and a website. Future plans
responsibility for maintaining the architecture over the long-term. include the installation of additional monitoring equipment and
DMSs, lane control systems on approaches to river crossing
The primary goal of the region’s ITS strategy is to achieve opti- bridges, roadway weather information systems, and communi-
mum performance of the entire transportation network by using cation links to other transportation management centers in the
ITS technologies and institutional cooperation to improve the region, including IDOT’s transportation management facility at
management and operation, and ultimately the performance the District 8 office and Traffic Management Centers operated
and safety, of the transportation system. The potential payoff by St. Louis County and the City of Clayton.
from improved transportation system management using ITS is
impressive. Evidence from around the country indicates effec- Traveler Information
tive operation and management of the transportation system
has resulted in improved travel times, reduced delays, fewer A key function of the Gateway Guide is to provide information
incidents, faster emergency response, and more travel choices. to the public on existing traffic conditions, weather, construc-
ITS also lessens the air quality impacts of motor vehicles by tion, maintenance, and special event activities. Travelers like to
improving traffic flow. know what is happening on the roads. By keeping travelers
aware of traffic conditions, they can plan their trips to avoid 600 percent.16 The severity of secondary crashes is often much
unnecessary delays and frustration. Providing travelers with cur- greater than that of the original incident.
rent traffic related information also helps to divert traffic away
from congested areas, alleviating additional pressure on the In an emergency situation, such as a motor vehicle crash, time
system. and information are critical to saving lives and preventing
injuries. The Gateway Guide helps to improve safety and reduce
Operators at the TMC observe traffic conditions 24 hours a day, the duration of the incident by quickly identifying its location
seven days a week using Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cam- using system surveillance cameras and relaying that information
eras. Twenty-two CCTV cameras are strategically positioned back to public safety agencies (police, fire, emergency respon-
along highways and bridges around the region with the primary ders, and other emergency management agencies) via the 911
purpose of monitoring traffic conditions. These cameras have a emergency dispatch system. This quick transfer of information
direct link to the TMC, a website, and to the major local televi- speeds up the time it takes for emergency crews to respond to
sion stations so that real-time information on current traffic crashes, improving clearance times and reducing the duration of
conditions can be communicated to area travelers. If a problem the incident, which lessens the risk of secondary crashes.
is detected on the system, such as an motor vehicle crash or
severe congestion, dispatchers will notify travelers via the Motorist Assist
Gateway Guide website and the media, giving them the infor-
mation they need to make more informed travel choices. DMSs In addition to system surveillance, the region’s Motorist Assist
are another very useful tool for informing travelers already on program is another key aspect of the Gateway Guide that sup-
the road. Thirteen DMSs are strategically located along the ports incident management efforts. The purpose of the pro-
Interstates allowing operators at the TMC to post messages for gram is to improve the flow of traffic and increase safety by
area travelers. This allows travelers in route to detour around detecting and responding to incidents quickly, removing inci-
congestion. The DMSs can also be used to as a communication dents in a timely manner, helping drivers in need of assistance,
tool to alert area residents in the case of an area wide emer- and providing high-visibility traffic control devices at incident
gency such as an Amber Alert (child abduction). scenes to increase driver awareness. The Motorist Assist pro-
gram has been in place since 1993. When the program began it
Incident Management consisted of only four vehicles patrolling just three routes with a
total centerline mileage of 31.5 miles. Since that time, the pro-
Another key function of the Gateway Guide is to support the gram has expanded considerably. The current program has 24
region’s ability to manage incidents that occur on St. Louis operators who patrol 11 beats from 5:00 AM to Noon and 1:00
highways. Stalled vehicles, traffic stops, highway debris, spilled PM to 7:30 PM seven days a week. Each year about 35,000
loads, and crashes are all examples of traffic incidents. assists are made to area travelers.
Although the problem most often associated with incidents is
delay, by far the most serious problem is the risk of secondary Since the inception of the program, Motorist Assist has become
crashes that occur as the result of a primary incident. Drivers an integrated component of the ITS system. Motorist Assist
are often taken by surprise when they come upon stopped traf- operators patrol area highways looking for incidents, congestion
fic or a stalled vehicle on an Interstate, leading to a high inci- or other potential dangers to drivers. Once a problem is identi-
dence of crashes at detrimental speeds. Studies have shown
that a freeway crash increases the risk of a secondary crash by 16 Traffic Incident Management Handbook, Prepared for FHWA, Office of Travel Management by PB
Farradyne, November 2000.
fied, operators in the field provide the details of the incident, corridor non-recurring congestion, caused by crashes and vehi-
including the location and approximate clearance time, to dis- cle breakdowns, will have a magnified effect on the transporta-
patchers at the Gateway Guide’s TMC, who in turn transmit the tion system and users of the system. St. Louis County will coor-
information to the public via ITS outlets such as DMSs, the dinate Motorist Assist services with MoDOT during the I-64 con-
Gateway Guide website, and the media. struction and assess continuation of the service after the I-64
construction is complete.
Although the Motorist Assist is a fairly low-tech component of
the Gateway Guide, it is a cost-effective program for improving Regional Arterial Management System
safety and reducing incident related delays on the system. An
evaluation of the program performed by the Department of Civil Managing the operation of the region’s arterial system is anoth-
and Environmental Engineering at the University of er essential piece of the region’s ITS strategy. Currently, an ITS
Missouri–Columbia found that the Motorist Assist program pro- system is not in place to manage the flow of traffic on arterial
duces at least 11 times the benefit compared with the cost of roads. The Council, MoDOT, St. Louis County and the City are,
supporting the program.17 The analysis also found the program however, working together to evaluate the feasibility of a
reduced delays by an estimated 188,667 vehicle-hours annually. Regional Arterial Management System (RAMS) to address a
This reduction in delay produced a total benefit of $2.43 million number of issues, including improving traffic congestion, fuel
annually, and significant reduction in emissions of air pollutants. efficiency and consumption, air quality, and safety. Preliminary
The potential safety benefit was even greater. A statistical efforts are focused on creating a framework for cross-jurisdic-
analysis done for the I-70 and I-270 corridors using motor vehi- tional cooperation and examining the cost-efficiencies of jointly
cle crash data showed a potential 77 percent reduction in the purchasing and installing traffic control equipment.
number of secondary crashes along the I-70 corridor, and a
potential 45 percent reduction in the number of secondary The intent of RAMS is to improve traffic signal coordination on
crashes on I-270. Long-term support of this program is critical all major routes throughout the region. This would improve the
to preventing crash related injuries and fatalities. flow of traffic and reduce the number of stops a driver makes
during a trip. Currently, each county or municipal jurisdiction
In addition to a freeway Motorist Assist program St. Louis maintains and operates the timing of the traffic signals in their
County will be implementing an arterial route Motorist Assist area, which makes it difficult to provide continuity from one
program during the rebuild of I-64. The reconstruction of I-64 jurisdiction to the other. Lack of signal coordination across
from west of Spoede Road in St. Louis County to east of jurisdictional boundaries increases congestion, resulting in
Kingshighway in the City of St. Louis is expected to shift more greater travel times and driver frustration. National studies
than 6,000 cars per hour from the interstate to parallel arterial have shown that the development of arterial management sys-
routes owned and maintained by St. Louis County and munici- tems could result in travel time reductions ranging from 8-25
palities in the corridor. percent along a particular corridor or arterial.18
Management of those parallel routes, as it relates to Motorist

Assists services, is even more complicated and will realize 17 Evaluation of the Motorist Assist Component of Gateway Guide in St. Louis, Missouri - Interim
greater benefits during the I-64 construction period than the Report, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Missouri-Columbia,
December, 2003.
freeway based program. Many of the parallel routes have little
or no shoulders to move disabled vehicles out of the travel-way 18 Federal Highway Administration, Cross-Jurisdictional Signal Coordination Case Studies, U.S.
Department of Transportation, February 2002.
quickly, and with the significant reduction in capacity of the I-64
The Kansas City area has already deployed a program called cally acquired for each route. Equipped vehicles have infrared
Operation Greenlight, which serves as a model for the local sensors over the passenger channels on all doors – one for each
development of RAMS. The vision behind Operation Greenlight bus door and two for each light rail car door—that detect the
is to provide a seamless transportation system without jurisdic- passage of individual objects below, recording each passenger,
tional boundaries. Twenty different jurisdictions in the Kansas and even distinguishing between passengers boarding and get-
City area are participating in Operation Greenlight, and the proj- ting out of the vehicle. Each record is tagged with a date, a
ect currently addresses 600 intersections, with the long-term time, and a latitude and longitude measured by an integrated
goal of coordinating 1,500 intersections. The project has pro- Global Positioning System (GPS). Data can then be correlated to
duced impressive results to date. An analysis of one pilot proj- specific stops to inventory activity. In addition, scheduled arrival
ect showed morning and afternoon peak travel times down by times are compared to arrival times recorded by the APC system
27 percent and 38 percent, respectively, with travel speeds up to assess on-time performance. Since the program was
by 39 percent and 62 percent during the same peak periods. deployed, scheduling of buses has become more efficient and
Fuel consumption was reduced by 20 percent in the morning on time performance has improved. Metro reports that cus-
peak hour of travel, and 26 percent in the afternoon peak travel tomer approval responses are up by 44 percent and complaints
time. The project has also produced significant reductions in are down by 33 percent. On-time performance has improved
vehicle emissions, a 19 percent reduction in the morning peak significantly and is now topping 90 percent.
hour of travel and a 21 percent reduction for the noon peak
hour. The implementation of RAMS could potentially hold the Metro also intends to equip its transit vehicles to automatically
same benefits for the St. Louis region, making it an important collect data, monitor vehicle systems, and quickly convey infor-
element of the region’s long-range strategy. mation to transit operators, system supervisors, dispatchers,
managers, administrators, and transit customers. To accomplish
Transit Management System this goal, Metro launched a “smart” bus pilot program in 2004
to test a number of ITS technologies.
Efficient performance is critical to operating an effective transit
system. Customers who depend upon transit to get to their The primary objectives of the pilot program are:
daily destinations plan their days around transit service sched-
ules. If the system is not managed effectively and regular delays • Generate customer and operator feedback on service and
occur in scheduled service, it can discourage customers from operational impacts to improve on-time performance
using the system, ultimately diminishing transit’s viability as an
alternative mode for travel. By using data collected on buses •Expose the public and decision-makers to the features and
and light rail vehicles through ITS technologies, transit operators potentially improved functionality of new technologies
are able to locate vehicles and monitor system performance,
which helps to improve scheduling and ultimately customer sat- •Assess regional data sharing and integration opportunities
isfaction.
•Provide real-time data on bus performance necessary for evalu-
Metro has had an automatic passenger counter (APC) program ating benefits such as improved fleet management, customer
in place since 2000. Metro invested in APC equipment for all of service, operator productivity, and safety
its light rail vehicles and 40 buses. Bus APC vehicles are rotated
through the various routes so that a sample of data is periodi-
•Evaluate both the technical feasibility and the benefit of specif- •Implement strategies identified through the Congestion
ic enhancements Management Process (CMP) into the metropolitan planning
and decision-making process
This “smart” bus technology typically uses a computer to
process messages exchanged between specialized sub-systems • Maintain and expand the Regional ITS Architecture
of sensors, controllers, data terminals, and communication
devices on the vehicle. The computer uses this data to provide • Develop and implement coordinated freeway and arterial
real-time information about approaching stops to passengers, management systems in collaboration with the states and
vehicle location to dispatchers and waiting passengers, and tac- local governments through the implementation of the
tical information to the vehicle operator. Testing of this pro- Regional Arterial Management System
gram will help to guide future ITS investments.
• Fund ITS deployment on state, regional, and local transporta-
The greatest challenge for improving the performance of the tion systems
entire transportation system will be developing a process for • Revise the Transportation Improvement Program process to
ongoing coordination and communication. Advanced technolo- integrate the Congestion Management Process and encourage
gies have created new opportunities for improving how the sys- local governments to implement management and operation
tem is managed and operated, yet simply investing in technolo- projects and RAMS;
gy will not significantly improve the operation of the transporta-
tion system. Maximizing the potential of technology will • Prepare congestion mitigation plans, through planning stud-
require creating new institutional relationships, defining shared ies, for corridors or subareas experiencing high congestion lev-
management responsibility for traffic operations, and redesign- els, emphasizing the evaluation of alternatives, management
ing processes, procedures and programs. and operation approaches, and accommodating other travel
modes;
With the application of new technology and better information-
sharing procedures, collaboration and coordination can lead to • Focus congestion mitigation efforts on Interstate and high
an integrated transportation system, with agencies routinely volume arterials where major bottlenecks exist.
working together to make the regional system work better for
all users – travelers, employers, businesses, commuters, public
safety agencies and many others.
The following strategies will guide the future efforts in the

area of congestion management:
• Develop and implement a Congestion Management Process

(CMP) built upon the Regional ITS Architecture, systems man-
agement and operations strategies, and Regional Arterial
Management System strategies
ACCESS TO OPPORTUNITY These trends affect the region’s ability to maximize individual
opportunity, build strong communities, increase economic activ-
Overview ity, and improve the overall quality of life of residents, which are
the underlying goals of Legacy 2035. Given the transportation
The relationship between transportation and metropolitan challenges facing the region, and the need to manage the sys-
growth and development is complex. Although many social and tem in such a way that it enhances rather than impedes oppor-
economic factors have influenced regional development pat- tunities for all the region’s citizens, the Council and its partners
terns, there is no question that transportation has played an have developed a variety of strategies aimed at addressing
integral role in shaping the region’s urban form. The construc- issues related to improving access to social and economic
tion of the nation’s Interstates and interconnected roadways, opportunities.
and the popularity of the automobile, has created unprecedent-
ed mobility and unlimited access to social, economic, and recre- Analysis
ational opportunities for the great majority. For those who have
mobility limitations or those who cannot afford the luxury of an One of the continuing challenges facing the St. Louis region is
automobile, however, the region’s decentralized pattern of making sure that people willing and able to work have access to
development has created a nearly insurmountable barrier that available job opportunities. Regional development patterns are
limits access to the many opportunities the region has to offer. resulting in a growing spatial mismatch between where the jobs
are and where people in need of jobs live. Between 1990 and
The dispersed development patterns that have emerged over the 2000, 95 percent of all job growth in the region occurred out-
last 50 years have fundamentally changed the way people trav- side the I-270/I-255 corridor, as seen in Figure 3-24. With new
el. According to the Census Bureau, between 2000 and 2005, employers settling into suburban areas, and existing firms relo-
regional density decreased by over 21 percent. The dispersion cating to outlying areas of the region, only 54 percent of the
of activities made possible by the automobile has made it an region’s jobs are located within this corridor, yet, 58 percent of
almost absolute necessity to meet their daily needs and actively the region’s low-income households and 70 percent of the
participate in the community. A vast majority of the population region’s transit dependent households live within this core area.
own at least one car (90 percent of the households) and 75 per- This spatial mismatch is creating a major obstacle for those indi-
cent own 2, 3 or more.19 viduals, particularly low-income, disabled, and even older
adults, trying to pursue economic opportunities.
Walking is no longer an option for most trips. The distance
between housing, jobs, schools, and shopping has become too Nearly every community in the region is accessible within a rea-
great, and in many cases too perilous, for most to safely walk to sonable amount of travel time by automobile. Figure 3-26
these destinations. Street design and lack of sidewalks make shows the percent of the region’s 1.36 million jobs that a driver
many roads unsuitable for pedestrians. Use of public trans- can access within 45 minutes during congested travel condi-
portation, especially bus transit, has generally declined, given its tions. The highest level of accessibility is within the I-270/I-255
inability to compete with the coverage, convenience, and speed corridors, where a majority of residents have access to more
of the automobiles. than 75 percent of the region’s jobs within a 45 minute travel
period. During the off peak period, auto accessibility increases
even more with high levels of accessibility spreading into nearly
all of St. Louis County and portions of Madison, St. Clair, St.
19 2000 US Census
Charles, and Jefferson counties. Opportunities are severely Access to jobs is a critical social and economic issue, but for the
restricted, however, for those who must depend upon transit. growing number of residents with mobility limitations, access to
Given the limited coverage of the transit system, a majority of services is another vital issue. More than 400,000 residents of
jobs are relatively inaccessible, and many jobs are simply out of the region reported to the Census Bureau in 2000 that they had
reach. Figure 3-28 shows the percentage of jobs that a transit a disability, which accounts for 18 percent of the population.21
user can access within 60 minutes during peak travel times, rec- Although there is a wide variation in the degree of disability
ognizing the increased time associated with using transit. among these residents, many have mobility challenges that
impede their ability to operate a vehicle. Given the way the
In a best-case scenario, a transit user can reach about 735,000 region has developed, access to transportation is vital to main-
jobs out of the 1.36 million available jobs. The average com- taining independence and quality of life for these individuals.
muter can reach about 250,000 jobs by transit and 1.04 million
by automobile during peak hours, given the time constraints For persons with disabilities using fixed route transit is often
listed above. Automobile users who do not mind longer com- infeasible if assistance is required to get to stops. Even when
mute times can access any job within the region. Transit users disabled individuals are able to get to bus stops, not all of the
do not have this advantage as the areas and times of service stops are designed to handle their special needs. Due to budget
available to them are limited. Even when jobs are theoretically constraints, several bus stops and their corresponding rights-of-
reachable by public transportation, commutes are often as way are not kept in ADA compliance. In a recent survey of
much as two hours long and sometimes more. 9,108 bus stops by Metro, almost 58 percent of the bus stops
and about 46 percent of the bus stop rights-of-way were classi-
Within the region, most residents living within households with- fied as inaccessible.22 Since conventional transit services often
out a vehicle (85 percent of the households in 200020) have do not meet the needs of the disabled, curb-to-curb or special-
access to public transit during peak hours of operation. Transit ized door-to-door paratransit service is often required.
accessibility diminishes significantly during the off peak period
when many express and low-volume routes do not operate, Many who live outside of the region’s core communities lack a
making it even more difficult for residents who are transit range of transportation options, which can ultimately isolate
dependent to access job opportunities, particularly for second them from fully participating in public life. People with mobility
and third shift jobs that are more prevalent in the low-wage challenges are widely distributed throughout the region, making
workforce. Working parents with children face the additional it difficult to serve their needs with fixed route transit.
challenge of relying on public transportation to make multiple Additionally, many disabled or elderly residents with mobility
trips including trips to childcare, school or training, shopping, restrictions work only part- time, if at all, limiting their incomes
and work. In some cases, this “trip linking” has meant adding and making it financially difficult to move to areas of the region
hours to the morning commutes of low-wage working families, where transit services are concentrated. Even if fixed route tran-
thus increasing the likelihood of showing up late for work and sit is available, many of these residents, because of the nature
making them vulnerable to losing jobs or being penalized by of their disability, are inhibited from using public transportation
welfare caseworkers. because fixed route systems do not provide the travel assistance
or door-to-door service that many disabled individuals require,
20 2000 Census. The number of households with zero cars available within block groups intersect- or because services are not available at the times they need to
ing transit lines was compared with the Saint Louis Region as a whole. travel. The needs of many persons with disabilities can only be
21 2000 Census. This includes all disabilities. Accessibility constraints may be physical or mental. met by specialized paratransit services.
22 Metro 2007.
Figure 3-24
Map
Employment Change
1990-2000
Figure 3-25
Map
Families in Poverty
Although Metro, MCT, and St. Clair Transit District, as well as a this separation are often duplication of services or of adminis-
number of other private and not-for-profit agencies provide on- trative efforts, inefficient use of vehicles and other resources,
demand paratransit services, the needs far outweigh the services poor service quality, and unmet transportation needs”; and fur-
available, particularly in the region’s outlying counties. Two stud- ther adds, “Planning, designing, funding, and delivering trans-
ies sponsored by East-West Gateway in St. Charles and Jefferson portation services for the transportation disadvantaged in a
Counties estimated that less than 50 percent of potential demand coordinated manner can help to address such problems”.24
in St. Charles and Jefferson Counties was being met.23
SAFETEA-LU requires that metropolitan planning areas develop
These issues not only affect the ability of low income, disabled and integrate into their planning processes a Coordinated
and older adult populations to pursue social and economic Human Services Transportation Plan (CHSTP). The CHSTP is a
opportunities, it can also have an effect on the viability of our regional-level planning tool designed to help guide investment
region’s economy. Firms located on the region’s suburban of limited resources for transportation services for low-income,
fringe are having difficulty accessing the workforce they need to elderly, and disabled individuals. The plan is intended to act as
sustain their businesses. Many suburban communities have a tool in coordinating the human service transportation pro-
zoning laws that inhibit or prohibit affordable housing, making grams in our area, with the goal of improved communication
it difficult for low-income residents to live close to these job and streamlined operations. Stakeholders in this process are
opportunities. Furthermore, the migration of business and individuals from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors that
other development away from the region’s core creates the represent both transportation and human service providers, as
need for scarce public resources to be spent on additional infra- well as users.
structure to address growing locational inefficiencies, which
only exacerbates the problem. The key elements of a coordinated plan include: an assessment
Planning for the future of transportation needs for individuals with disabilities, older
adults, and persons with limited incomes; an inventory of avail-
Past Actions and Future Directions able services that identifies areas of redundant service and gaps
in service; strategies to address the identified gaps in service;
Management and operations is a common theme in the provi- identification of coordination actions to eliminate or reduce
sion of transportation services. Nationally, and locally, the dis- duplication in services and of strategies for more efficient uti-
cussion has carried into services for low-income, elderly, and dis- lization of resources; and prioritization of implementation
abled individuals, particularly because of the limited resources strategies.
available to serve those populations. The Transit Cooperative
Research Program (TCRP) has noted, “…although transit In light of the earlier discussions of mobility, accessibility, and
providers and human services agencies operate similar services need, it is critical that transit and paratransit dependent popu-
for similar types of riders, transportation is often provided lations be afforded the opportunity to access the region’s trans-
through separate, parallel delivery systems. Reasons for this sep- portation system. Development of the CHSTP is underway and
aration include differences in funding sources, administrative the Council will continue to work closely with stakeholders in
and regulatory requirements, and the importance of transporta- the region to improve coordination, communication, and imple-
tion to the missions of different types of agencies. The results of mentation of strategies.
23 Multisystem, Inc., St. Charles County Transit/Paratransit Study, prepared for the East-West 24 TCRP Report 91, Economic Benefits of Coordinating Human Service Transportation and Transit
Gateway Coordinating Council, October 23, 2000. Multisystem, Inc., Jefferson County Services, 2003
Transit/Paratransit Study, prepared for the East-West Gateway Coordinating Council, June 29, 2001.
Access to Jobs of the 21st Century economy—including changes in the nature

of work, the skill sets required in new-age occupations, and the
Since the early 1990s, East-West Gateway has exercised a leader- educational attainment of lower-skilled workers coming out of
ship role in designing, funding, and implementing programs an educational system that is rife with problems. Most immedi-
that package a variety of services to help connect low-income ately, the agency will serve as a resource to partner agencies
job-seekers with good jobs in the St. Louis regional economy. and groups in linking and promoting educational and employ-
Taking advantage of what has been learned from extensive ment resources accessible through an expanding light rail sys-
research in the workforce development field, staff have promot- tem.
ed initiatives in which community-based outreach, work readi-
ness preparation, and industry skills training have been integrat- While these services and programs have begun to address the
ed with transportation, childcare, and employment counseling challenges associated with access to jobs, it should be recog-
services. Research and anecdotal experience show that lack of nized that these programs are only a start. Many of the pro-
transportation, unreliable childcare, and on-the-job communica- grams are time-limited, and are only a patchwork approach to
tion problems are among the principal reasons why low-income addressing the region’s needs. The transportation system is
workers have trouble staying employed. When appropriate simply not well designed to serve residents without access to an
services are made available for a period of one year after automobile. As the baby boom generation ages and the older
employment has begun, the likelihood of developing reliable adult population grows, this problem will become even more
work habits increases significantly. severe. Addressing these issues will require full recognition of
the seriousness of the issue and its impact on people’s lives, a
By 2005, East-West Gateway partners had successfully achieved rethinking of priorities and development practices, and a major
a level of scale by which more than 1,000 previously unem- restructuring of the way transportation services are provided.
ployed and underemployed individuals were securing jobs on an Possible strategies to supplement ongoing and new activities
annual basis through the St. Louis Regional Jobs Initiative, and can be included in the development of the CHSTP.
several hundred more were taking advantage of complementary
transportation services through Bridges to Work. Both pro- Paratransit Services
grams were co-located in 2003 and 2004 to the Metropolitan
Education and Training Center in the urban core of the region, There are over 50 agencies providing some form of social service
directly adjacent to the Wellston MetroLink station. This made transportation to the residents of St. Louis City, St. Louis,
the programs easily accessible to low-income workers from both St. Charles, Franklin, and Jefferson counties in the Missouri por-
the Missouri and Illinois sides of the region, who take advan- tion of the region. This number includes two Area Agencies on
tage of training programs at the MET by means of light rail. Aging, funded by the Division of Aging of the Missouri
Bridges to Work coordinates a number of reverse commute Department of Social Services, that provide funding to another
transportation projects, which begin and end at convenient 50 satellite senior centers for transportation services. There also
light rail stations. Many of these are funded with federal dollars are various services for persons with physical and mental devel-
through the Job Access and Reverse Commute program. opmental disabilities funded by the Missouri Department of
Mental Health.
Moving toward the year 2035, East-West Gateway’s principal
challenge will be to adapt the successful models developed
through ten years of research and demonstration to the realities
Figure 3-26
Map
Job Accessibility:
Peak Hour by Auto
Figure 3-27
Map
Job Accessibility:
Peak Hour Transit
Figure 3-28
Map
Job Accessibility:
Off Peak Hour Transit
The majority of agencies providing paratransit services are locat- agencies participating in the PTMA are used more effectively.
ed in St. Louis County and St. Louis City. For this reason, social Client agencies receive the benefit of increased revenues when
service transportation is more accessible to urban residents, they are given riders from other programs. In addition, this sys-
based solely on a consideration of supply. In addition to servic- tem is able to provide some service to the general public in rural
es specifically for elderly and disabled persons, Metro operates areas by mixing these trips with agency trips. Without this
the Call-A-Ride and Call-A-Ride Plus paratransit services for the coordinated reservation and scheduling system, the general
general public and for persons with disabilities. public could not be served because of program eligibility restric-
tions. Expansion of the TMA concept will likely be one of many
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) mandates public para- a strategies included in the development of the CHSTP.
transit services in areas where there is fixed-route public trans-
portation service. Since there is no fixed-route service in The following strategies will guide future Council efforts in
Franklin and Jefferson counties and most of St. Charles County, the area of access to opportunity:
the impact of the ADA’s paratransit requirement is negligible in
the outlying Missouri counties within the region. The OATS sys- • Ensure that ADA compliance constitutes an integral part of
tem, which serves the elderly developmentally disabled, oper- the planning process for all aspects of transportation systems;
ates some wheelchair lift equipped service in the rural areas, but
the supply of service falls short of potential demands in both • Develop incentives for exceeding ADA standards through the
rural and urban area. Transportation Improvement Program funding process;
There are approximately 30 agencies in St. Clair, Madison, and • Implement technical assistance programs that will assist local
Monroe counties that provide special transportation. These governments’ with ADA compliance;
agencies operate at least 130 vehicles. In Illinois, special trans-
portation funding is provided from the same federal sources as • Create educational programs, in cooperation with the dis-
in Missouri, including funding for aging and mental abled community, that explain transportation barriers and
health/developmental disabilities services. offer practical solutions for transportation planners, engi-
neers, developers, funding agencies, managers, operators, and
A Paratransit Transportation Management Association (PTMA) consumers;
has been established to coordinate services among paratransit
providers in the City and County of St. Louis and adjoining • Encourage programs that take a comprehensive view of access
Jefferson and St. Charles counties in Missouri. Presently seven issues and seek to ensure that streets, sidewalks, space for
agencies participate in the association, which is managed by bus stops, and crosswalks are built and maintained on a coor-
Metro. The PTMA was designed to offer a range of services to dinated basis to allow seamless, safe movement from one
providers, including coordinated communications, scheduling area to the next by people with disabilities;
and dispatching, driver training, and vehicle maintenance pro-
grams. In 2006, the 203 vehicles coordinated through the PTMA • Integrate strategies identified through development of the
provided nearly 925,000 one-way trips. Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan into the met-
ropolitan planning and decision making process;
By sharing trips and allowing riders from different agencies and
programs to mix on the same vehicles, resources within the
• Encourage compacts between agencies that allow paratransit

providers to offer service across jurisdictional lines or program
categories and provide reciprocal funding mechanisms to
ensure that all such agencies are properly compensated;
• Support programs to increase transit/paratransit operating

and capital funding;
• Encourage development of appropriate transit/paratransit

services in counties without adequate fixed-route service;
• Support initiatives and policies that encourage job creation in

low-income and minority communities;
• Monitor equity in the regional distribution of transportation

costs and benefits;
• Ensure that low-income and minority populations have equal

access to the metropolitan planning and decision-making
process through proactive outreach programs;
• Support efforts to improve workforce preparedness and job

access strategies developed under the Regional Jobs Initiative,
the Regional Access to Jobs Plan, the Workforce Development
Plan, and the Bridges to Work program;
• Promote changes in public incentives for development and

redevelopment that will encourage employers to locate closer
to labor markets.
Intentionally blank
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT meet their household’s daily travel needs. It has increased the
demand for public infrastructure—transportation, water and
Overview sewers, and schools—creating tension between meeting new
demands and taking care of what already exists. It has affected
Sustainable development is a multifaceted concept that encom- the environmental quality of our air and water resources. It has
passes principles of environmental stewardship, social equity, created a tax burden for the region, placing particular burden
and economic viability. Rising concerns about continued on communities where the demands for maintenance of public
growth in energy demand and costs, U.S. dependence on for- infrastructure and services remain high despite significant losses
eign sources for oil, increasingly apparent signs of global warm- of population and businesses. And finally, it has resulted in
ing, deterioration of the human environment and natural geographical inequities, leaving low-income, largely minority,
resources upon which our communities depend, rising rates of residents concentrated in the region’s core communities isolated
poverty, and social inequity are among the many topics that from many opportunities that the region has to offer.
have stimulated worldwide dialogue and debate about the con-
sequences of current development patterns on the sustainability Highway focused transportation investment policies have unde-
of our social, economic, and natural systems. niably played a major role in creating metropolitan development
patterns. The extent to which highways have dictated develop-
Although no consensus has been reached as to how sustainable ment patterns, however, is complex and highly debated.
development is defined, two distinct principles have emerged. Observation of the development cycle over the past fifty years
The first is making responsible use of natural and built resources has shown that roads certainly create opportunities for develop-
by conserving non-renewable resources and preserving and ment, yet many other social and economic factors have played a
renewing built resources that present generations value. This is critical role as well. Increased household wealth and disposable
a matter of stewardship. The second emphasizes maximizing income, residents’ desire for safer and quieter neighborhoods,
the potential of human resources by ensuring that all people cleaner air quality, new and more affordable housing, more
have real opportunities to learn, work, thrive, and be involved in space, and tax incentives, such as deductions for business relat-
decisions that affect their lives. This is a matter of justice. ed travel, home mortgage interest, and Tax Increment Financing
Sustainability, then, is about taking thoughtful and proper care are among many factors that have influenced the pattern of
of all resources, and ensuring that all have the opportunity to metropolitan growth and urban form that exists today.
share in the benefits there of.
Most could not disagree that given the finite level of human,
Transportation investment policies play a critical role in sustain- fiscal, and natural capital that exists, pursuing strategies to
able development. The mobility generated by modern trans- implement a more sustainable approach to development and
portation is linked to the distribution of regional activities, auto transportation investment is desirable. Widespread uncertainty
dependency, and equity. Indicators show that decentralization exists, however, about how to go about achieving sustainability
and uncoordinated patterns of dispersed development have had goals. Sustainable development is a subject matter that goes
serious implications for cities. It has led to an increased con- well beyond traditional transportation planning, and there are
sumption and demand for land, energy, and tax revenues to many obstacles and challenges in the path to achieving it.
support new development. It has made the automobile almost What has become quite obvious, given the high level of frag-
an absolute necessity to today’s way of life. Nearly every house- mentation that exists in the region, is that the private business,
hold must have at least one automobile, if not multiple cars, to public sector, and individual citizens must play a role in
Figure 3-29
Map
Change in Urbanized Area
1950-2000
developing strategies and solutions for better coordinating land The rate of land consumption has far outpaced the rate of pop-
use, economic and community development, and transportation ulation growth over the last five decades. As Figure 3-30
decisions. The region must improve its decision-making struc- shows, the urbanized area grew by 286 percent between 1950
tures to find a better balance between the need to enhance and 2000, while the population only grew by 40 percent.25
mobility for all citizens and to stimulate social and economic
growth in all parts of the region without compromising the nat- Even more striking is that 86 percent of the reign’s population
ural environment. While the emphasis of each variable may dif- growth occurred prior to 1970, yet 64 percent of the growth in
fer, the goal is consistent: improving quality of life for all the land area took place after 1970. Since 1970, the region’s popu-
region’s citizens and sustaining strong, health communities. lation grew by a bit over 4 percent, while the urbanized area
expanded by 89 percent.
Analysis
Figure 3-30
Transportation has fundamentally changed how we design our Growth of St.Louis Urbanized Area 1950-2000
communities, where we are able to live, where businesses
locate, and how we travel. It defines much of the American
21st Century way of life. Fifty years ago streetcars were still a
prominent part of the cityscape, the population of the City of
St. Louis was at its peak, and most jobs and other services were
concentrated in the region’s core area within walking distance,
a brief transit ride, or a short trip by car from local neighbor-
hoods. The development of the Interstate System had just
begun with the construction of I-70, and the automobile was
beginning to dominate the transportation market.
Today, the Interstate System is largely complete after 40 years of

construction. The private automobile has risen in popularity
and driving has become a large part of everyday life. The
expansive roadway network has provided opportunities for resi- Source: US Bureau of Census 1950-2000
dents to move further away from their place of work, and to
travel farther distances for other regional activities. The high-
way investment over the last fifty years has improved the quality The result of this expansion has been a resettlement of popula-
of life for many by increasing access to health care, jobs, education and employment from the region’s inner core to low-densi-
tion, and recreational amenities. These benefits however, have ty development in outlying areas of the region. Given the nomi-
not come without social, economic, and environmental costs. nal growth in population, much of the population growth that
communities in outlying portions of the region has enjoyed
Perhaps one of the most profound changes that has occurred have been at the expense of the region’s older communities,
over the last fifty years is the transformation of the region’s particularly the City of St. Louis. Table 3-6 shows population
urban form. The map in Figure 3-29 shows a spatial depiction trends by county between 1950 and 2000. As the table illus-
of how the “urbanized” area has expanded since 1950.
25 U.S. Bureau of the Census 1950 - 2000
trates, the population in the City has declined by over 500,000 core communities. In 2000, nearly 10 percent of the house-
residents since its peak in 1950. As population declined in St. holds in the City of St. Louis fell below the poverty line, a rate
Louis City, St. Louis County grew dramatically, although the more than twice the regional average of 4.4 percent.27 In 2006,
population growth has leveled off in recent years. Figure 3-31 the City had an unemployment rate of 6.9 percent, an improve-
shows regional population change between 1990 and 2000. ment over recent years, yet well above all the other counties in
During this ten-year period, St. Charles County grew by 33 per- the region. Over 50 percent of the City is African American,
cent. Recent census estimates for 2005 show continuing high which represents 37 percent of the region’s total African
growth in St. Charles County. It also shows population stabiliz- American population. The City, however, is not the only part of
ing in the City. Commensurate with its past population losses, the region that has been affected by the redistribution of
the City has also lost businesses and jobs over the past few households and jobs. The concentration of poverty and loss of
decades. Many of those jobs have followed new markets devel- population and households has also occurred in many of the
oping in outlying portions of the region. Between 1970 and region’s inner ring suburbs, including North St. Louis and
2000, the City lost almost 24 percent of its jobs, while the num- St. Clair counties.
ber of jobs in the region grew by 48 percent.
The loss of population and jobs and concentration of poverty
This shifting of population and jobs has created a number of has created financial challenges for older communities. Many of
economic challenges for residents and their communities. One these communities, especially in the region’s core, have lost
of the more striking outcomes has been the disproportionate much of their tax base, but must still maintain their public infra-
concentration of poverty and minority residents in the region’s structure and services in a fiscal environment of rising costs and
Table 3-6
Population Trends 1950 – 2000
County 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2006 est. 1950-
2000 2000-2006
St. Louis City 856,796 750,026 619,269 452,804 396,685 348,189 347,181 -59.4% -0.3%
St. Louis 406,349 703,532 952,050 974,180 993,508 1,016,315 1,000,510 150.1% -1.6%
St. Charles 29,832 52,970 93,628 144,107 212,751 283,883 338,719 851.6% 19.3%
Jefferson 38,007 66,377 105,661 146,183 171,380 198,099 216,469 421.2% 9.3%
Franklin 36,046 44,566 55,533 71,233 80,603 93,807 100,067 160.2% 6.7%
Missouri Subtotal 1,367,030 1,617,471 1,826,141 1,788,507 1,854,927 1,940,293 2,002,946 41.9% 3.2%
Madison 182,307 224,689 251,383 247,664 249,238 258,941 265,303 42.0% 2.5%
St. Clair 205,995 262,509 285,181 267,531 262,852 256,082 260,919 24.3% 1.9%
Monroe 13,282 15,507 18,702 20,117 22,422 27,619 31,876 107.9% 15.4%
Illinois Subtotal 401,584 502,705 555,266 535,312 534,512 542,642 558,098 35.1% 2.8%
REGIONAL TOTAL 1,768,614 2,120,176 2,381,407 2,323,819 2,389,439 2,482,935 2,561,044 40.4% 3.1%
Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census 27 U.S. Census 2000

Figure 3-31
Map
Population Change
1990-2000
decreasing revenues. Many of these communities have high dents commuting outside of St. Louis County to work dropped
levels of vacant and abandoned housing as well as underutilized from 46 to 28 percent. These shifting travel patterns has lead
or abandoned commercial and industrial property, which create to tension between the need to expand the transportation sys-
environmental and economic risks that deter private investment tem to meet this growing demand and the need to preserve the
and deplete public resources, ultimately diminishing the com- public investment already made in the existing system. These
munity’s economic viability. Although no regional inventory of competing needs have made it difficult to address either need
brownfields exists, the most recent building survey in the City of very well, given the limited financial capacity of the region to
St. Louis identified nearly 6,000 vacant or abandoned buildings. invest in transportation.
While the majority of those properties are residential, nearly
1,000 are commercial, industrial, or mixed-use buildings.27 Standard zoning practices in suburban and ex-urban communi-
These trends not only affect the ability of local communities to ties only add to the demand for public infrastructure. These
sustain themselves, but their success or failure also affects the practices emphasize low density, single use development that
region’s ability to sustain itself. Research shows that the pros- separates residential, commercial, and industrial activities.
perity of an entire metropolitan area is closely associated with Consequently, residents are limited in their travel choices.
the vitality of its central city.28 The most successful metropolitan Biking or walking is not an option for most trips because of the
regions have thriving central cities. distance between destinations, or the lack of public facilities to
support safe travel by these modes. Low-density development
As development continues to spread into relatively undeveloped reduces the effectiveness of transit as well, by increasing costs
portions of the region where infrastructure is not as well devel- and decreasing operational efficiency due to large service areas
oped, it creates an even greater demand for new transportation and the non-traditional design of suburban roadway networks.
infrastructure. These trends are compounded by the increasing The result is more automobile travel, more congestion and
complexity of travel patterns. Many residents in outlying coun- delay, greater environmental impacts, higher demand for new
ties are traveling far distances to work, making more suburb-to- or upgraded infrastructure, and greater travel challenges for
suburb commutes as opposed to the traditional commute from those without access to personal transportation.
suburbs to downtown. Although the balance between jobs and
population is improving in outlying counties of the region, giv- The growth in developed land and travel also places pressure on
ing some residents opportunities to work closer to home, as natural resources vital to sustaining quality of life in the region.
table 3-7 shows well over 50 percent of the population living in Valuable land resources that were once agricultural or open
Jefferson, St. Charles, and Monroe counties still commute out- spaces continue to be converted to other uses. Lands sensitive
side their county for employment in St. Louis County and City. to development that lay close to highways, such as floodplains
Figure 3-31 further illustrates the point. Between 1970 and and karst areas, are being developed at increasing rates. The
2000 the percentage of residents in the City of St. Louis com- amount of impervious surfaces is growing exponentially as a
muting outside of the City to work grew from 27 percent of 41 result of new residential and commercial development, added
percent. In contrast, the percentage of St. Louis County resi- pavement, bridges, sidewalks, and parking lots. This increases
27 Ron Smith, Vacant and Abandoned Buildings: Legacy of Urban Sprawl, Community Environmental
Resource Program, February 2002.
28 Marlin B. Boarnet and Andrew F. Haughwout, Do Highways Matter?Evidence and Policy

Implications of Highways’ Influence on Metropolitan Development, prepared for the Brookings
Institution Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy, August 2000.
Figure 3-32
Map
Percentage of Workers Employed
Outside County of Residence
Table 3-7
Worker Flow
Workers Working In
Total
working % working
outside outside
St. Louis St. Louis St. Charles Jefferson Franklin Madison St. Clair Monroe Outside county of county of
Workers Living In City County County County County County County County the Region residence residence
St. Louis City 140,747 82,840 50,997 1,439 1,181 291 1,253 1,449 50 1,247 57,907 41.1
St. Louis County 498,319 105,207 358,742 12,859 5,463 1,752 3,801 4,342 264 5,889 139,577 28.0
St. Charles County 149,111 10,930 62,353 70,058 380 555 735 884 21 3,195 79,053 53.0
Jefferson County 98,023 15,947 42,181 1,291 34,331 1,013 489 857 134 1,780 63,692 65.0
Franklin County 45,363 2,253 11,842 766 780 27,161 145 239 12 2,165 18,202 40.1
MISSOURI PART
OF THE REGION 931,563 217,177 526,115 86,413 42,135 30,772 6,423 7,771 481 14,276 358,431 38.5
Madison County 121,852 14,499 16,780 1,051 288 136 75,499 9,317 70 4,212 46,353 38.0
St. Clair County 113,479 18,251 12,582 640 304 130 7,044 70,379 916 3,233 43,100 38.0
Monroe County 14,392 2,376 3,333 84 205 23 421 1,730 5,367 853 9,025 62.7
ILLINOIS PART
OF THE REGION 249,723 35,126 32,695 1,775 797 289 82,964 81,426 6,353 8,298 98,478 39.4
ST. LOUIS REGION 1,181,286 252,303 558,810 88,188 42,932 31,061 89,387 89,197 6,834 22,574 456,909 38.7
OUTSIDE THE
REGION 72,679 10,678 21,327 10,489 3,747 5,169 13,584 6,984 701
TOTAL 1,253,965 262,981 580,137 98,677 46,679 36,230 102,971 96,181 7,535 22,574 456,909 36.4
Source: CTPP 3, Census 2000
the amount of runoff and contaminates (oil, heavy metals, salts, region’s environmental resources, a regional land-use forecast-
and other materials associated with development) that enter ing model, termed the Blueprint model29, was used to forecast
ground water, streams, and rivers. The long-term effects of cur- where development is most likely to occur in the St. Louis
rent patterns of growth have resulted in significant fragmenta- region. Regional land-use forecasts were then evaluated relative
tion of the region’s wildlife and supporting ecosystems, reduc- to a comprehensive inventory of natural resources to under-
ing biodiversity as watersheds, and the rivers and streams that stand the potential development “stress” imposed upon these
feed them, deteriorate from erosion and contamination. sensitive areas as a result of land use change and transportation
investment, both current and planned.
In an effort to better understand the potential impact of future
development and planned transportation improvements on the 29 The Blueprint model is an integrated transportation and land use forecasting tool that utilizes the
region’s travel simulation model, TransEval, and Land use Evolution and Assessment Model(LEAM).
Figure 3-33
Map
Land Use Change 2040
‘Legacy 2035 Focus Areas for Problem Solving 81
Figure 3-34
Map
Development Difference 2040
No Build versus Full Build Scenarios
Figure 3-35
Map
Development Difference 2040
Financially Constrained versus Full Build Scenarios
Figure 3-33 (p. 79) shows a projection of land use change esti- impact of regional development imposed significant levels of
mated to occur by 2040 assuming no further investment in stress on the region’s resources. That stress, however, varied
transportation system are made beyond the commitments iden- among resource type and location. The highest levels of devel-
tified in the current Transportation Improvement Program, or a opment pressure are concentrated within the urbanized area.
“no build” scenario. As the map shows, the model predicts a The most beneficial outcome of this analysis was identifying
continuation of current development patterns. Although many areas of highest concern due to development pressure and iden-
factors affect the probability for development change, the tifying ways to utilize the Blueprint model to inform develop-
biggest transportation factors are accessibility to the system and ment of long-term resource conservation strategies.
travel time delays.
Vehicle travel is a major contributor to the region’s air quality
Figures 3-34 and 3-35 (p. 80 and 81) illustrate the difference in problems. Travelers approaching downtown St. Louis are often
2040 development resulting from testing two investment sce- greeted on a hot summer’s day by a brown haze that seems to
narios against the 2040 “no build” scenario. These scenarios rest on the City’s skyline. That haze, or smog, is the result of
were based on the investment plan identified in Legacy 2030. ozone, an air pollutant formed in photochemical reactions of
They include a “fiscally constrained” scenario, consisting of proj- volatile organic compounds, such as hydrocarbons, and
ects identified in the priority project listing of Legacy 2030, nitrogen oxides in the presence of heat and strong sunlight.
including the new Mississippi River Bridge, and a “full build”
scenario that includes all projects identified in the plan.
The congestion relief provided by transportation projects imple-

mented in the “financially constrained” scenario pulled
some development that was expected to occur in Figure 3-36
Jefferson County to the Illinois portion of the region, Projected Development Through 2040 by County
and to a lesser extent shifted some development with-
in St. Charles County. It is important to note that the
difference in development shown on the maps does
not indicate that growth will not occur in those coun-
ties, but rather it shows the differences in growth that
will occur as a result of implementing the two test sce-
narios. The accompanying graph in figure 3-36 shows
a comparison of the number of acres developed rela-
tive to the amount of open space for each scenario in
absolute terms. Although the full build out of the
plan does have some effect on redistributing develop-
ment, the difference between the “full build” and “fis-
cally constrained” scenarios is minor. The biggest
influence over development change resulted from the
new Mississippi River Bridge, which was introduced in
the fiscally constrained scenario. The cumulative
Source: LEAM
High levels of ozone, which usually occur on hot sum- Figure 3-37
mer days, pose significant health risks, especially to Bad Air Quality Days vs. Vehicle Miles of Travel
people with respiratory illnesses. About one-quarter
of the region’s volatile organic compounds and nitro-
gen emissions, the precursors of ozone, come from
motor vehicle exhausts. Fine-grained particulate mat-
ter (PM2.5) has also become a concern because of its
health risks. Fine particulate matter is a mix of solid
particles and tiny droplets suspended in the air, which
is comprised by a variety of components including
acids, organic chemicals, metal, dirt, or dust particles.
Particulates are emitted directly from the combustion
of fuel, fires, and certain industrial activities. The par-
ticles are so small (about 1/30th with width of a
human hair) that they penetrate and lodge in deep
areas of the lungs, which can result in irritation of the
eyes, sore throat, coughing, chest tightness, and
shortness of breath.
The St. Louis region is designated as being a “moder-
ate” non-attainment area for ozone and fine particle Despite air quality problems associated with petroleum-based
(PM2.5) standards. This designation by the U.S. EPA requires that fuels, growing travel and increasing reliance on the automobile
the states of Illinois and Missouri develop plans for attaining the in previous decades has created an insatiable appetite for non-
standards, including monitoring pollution levels and imposing renewable petroleum based fuels. This has become a particular
controls for reducing precursor emissions. Transportation con- concern in recent years as prices have skyrocketed to new
trol measures include the implementation of projects that heights. Not only have these rising costs placed a strain on
improve traffic flow or reduce vehicle travel, thereby reducing families with increasingly tight budgets at the fuel pump, but
emission levels, enhanced inspection of emission control system dependence on petroleum based fuels has affected every sector
on automobiles, vapor recovery nozzles at gasoline stations, and of our economy.
requirements for cleaner burning fuels. Although the region
attained the previous one-hour ozone standard, the stringent 8- National policies including the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPACT)
hour standard and imposition of new standards for particulate and the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 (CAAA) both
matter continue to raise the bar for improving air quality in St. emphasize the development of alternative fuels. Federal, State
Louis. Figure 3-37 shows the number of days that air quality and fuel provider fleets are already covered by these mandates.
reached levels considered unhealthy. These data are collected at The State of Missouri passed a law in 2006 that all gasoline sold
monitoring stations. Based on current measurements and pro- in the State must contain at least 10% ethanol. These mandates
grams being currently implemented, St. Louis is on track to have resulted in some progress in displacing the amount of
attain the 8-hour ozone standard by 2010. petroleum-based fuel used by individuals and fleets, through
the use of Natural Gas, Compressed Natural Gas, Propane,
Biodiesel, Ethanol, and new hybrid vehicle technologies, yet Perhaps one of the most valuable tools that has been developed
progress is slow. Recent shifts towards the production and use of is the Gateway Blueprint Model. This model, which is an inte-
ethanol have presented other concerns related to production and grated transportation land-use forecasting tool, will enable the
distribution. Nonetheless, in 2006 the use of alternative fuels in evaluation and visualization of the broad social, economic, and
the St. Louis region displaced a total of 7,677,793.64 gallons of environmental impacts and the various trade-offs associated
gasoline. The progress towards alternative fuels will also benefit with land-use and transportation decisions. The model simu-
air quality since they burn much cleaner than gasoline. lates land use change across space and time, providing a basis
for dialogue about the relationship between various transporta-
Collectively, the way our region grows and develops has signifi- tion and land-use decisions, and ultimately enabling more
cant social, economic and environmental implications. The informed and strategic decision-making.
issues are complex, and no single solution will resolve them.
Progress in addressing these issues will require ongoing dia- In July 2005, the Council adopted the St. Louis Regional Bicycle
logue, regional collaboration, and a rethinking of transportation and Walking Transportation Facility Plan. This plan provides a
and land use policies and their implications. foundation for the development of bicycle and pedestrian infra-
structure and educational programs throughout the region. It
Past Actions and Future Directions includes model development regulations, and demonstrates
how to retrofit the existing transportation network to include
Historically, the region has been shaped by a series of individual, safe bicycling and walking accommodations. The information
often disconnected, public and private decisions. Taken togeth- included in the plan provides a common reference for munici-
er, these decisions have resulted in a transportation system that palities, agencies, and the public to use when considering vari-
inevitably functions ineffectively in meeting the region’s sustain- ous solutions for developing, promoting, and enhancing bicy-
able development goals. Given the region includes more than cling and pedestrian facilities throughout the region.
190 municipalities, and 650 local governments, coordination of
local planning is nearly impossible. Many of the Council’s plan- One of the primary purposes for developing the plan was to better
ning activities revolve around developing planning tools to sup- address the diverse mobility needs currently not met by today’s
port consistent local planning in the region to build stronger, auto oriented transportation system. By identifying the gap
more livable communities. between demand for and the supply of services, efforts can be
made during the project development process to integrate multi-
In 2000, the Gateway Blueprint Initiative was initiated to ple modes into project designs. Integrating bicycling and walking
encourage long-term regional design from the only place it can accommodations into the local transportation system will improve
successfully originate—the local level. The Gateway Blueprint equity, choice, and opportunity for all users of the system.
provides tools to assist communities in making decisions that
affect the economic efficiencies, health and viability of both the The goals and strategies outlined in the St. Louis Regional
local community and the region as a whole. It also offers a Bicycle and Walking Transportation Facility Plan are being imple-
framework for public officials and citizens to evaluate how we mented through the Transportation Improvement Program;
make public investments. As part of this initiative, Council staff working with municipalities and other agencies to include the
have developed a number of technical resources for local gov- plan’s components in activities they undertake; and by engaging
ernments, including information on best practices in zoning, bicycle, pedestrian, and disability advocacy groups through the
community planning techniques, and low impact design. process set out in the plan.
In 2006, the Council launched the Great Streets Initiative to sustainability principles into the region’s metropolitan decision-
expand the way communities think of transportation. Rather making process. First, federal policy now requires that the met-
than viewing a roadway project as solely a way to move more ropolitan planning process promote consistency between trans-
cars and trucks faster, the goal of the St. Louis Great Streets portation improvements and state and local planned growth
Initiative is to trigger economic and social benefits by centering and economic development. This is an immense challenge for
communities around interesting, lively and attractive streets that the St. Louis region because many decisions, particularly land
serve all modes of transportation. use, fall within the hands of local governments. In an effort to
begin addressing this new challenge, the Council staff convened
The project is being implemented in three phases. The first a roundtable discussion on the topic involving a diverse group
phase culminated in October 2006 with the Great Streets of stakeholders, including local government officials from all
Symposium. More than 160 planners, engineers, city managers areas of the region, regional business leadership, state and local
and elected officials attended the event, during which local and commerce associations, development specialists, and more.
national experts discussed the many benefits of great streets.
Great Streets not only help make attractive, interesting places The dialogue revolved around some basic questions: what role
but they support local economic development goals and does transportation play in economic development currently in
improve quality-of-life by providing transportation choices for the region; what transportation benefits do local businesses
the entire population. The second phase of the project included need from the transportation system; and how can we address
the development of this web-based Digital Guide, which pro- this challenge to improve consistency between state and region-
vides planning, design and process-related recommendations for al plans given that no coordinated approach to regional devel-
making “Great Streets” happen. In February 2007, a technical opment exists. The dialogue was thought provoking, and
workshop was held to introduce the St. Louis Great Streets despite the diverse perspectives, the participant’s expressed a
Digital Guide and to assist local communities in designing their clear interest in addressing this challenge together. Participants
own “Great Streets.” Following the workshop, this web manual recognized that maintaining the status quo is not moving the
became publicly accessible as a regularly maintained website. region into a more competitive position, and that it is important
The Final Phase of the St. Louis Great Streets Initiative is the that the region does make an effort to address this problem.
application of “demonstration projects”. Communities in the St. They encouraged the Council to take a leadership role in facili-
Louis region have been invited to compete against each other tating further dialogue around this subject, working with local
for the ability to host a demonstration project. If selected a governments, the private sector, and other stakeholders to
number of demonstration projects will receive planning support develop a regional strategy for economic development that
and possibly funds to implement improvements. The St. Louis works for our region. The Council will build on these recom-
Great Streets Digital Guide will be a tremendous asset for work- mendations as we move forward with long-range planning.
ing with local governments to improve planning and design of
local communities throughout the region. In coming years, this Second, SAFTEA-LU now requires that environmental mitigation
guide will be integrated into educational programs, and the be addressed within the context of the long-range planning
Transportation Improvement Program to help achieve regional process. In addition, the law required that long-term strategies
sustainable development goals. for environmental mitigation be developed in consultation with
As part of the development of Legacy 2035, the Council began federal and state regulatory agencies responsible for managing
a process to address two new challenges established in natural resources. The intent of this new federal policy is to
SAFETEA-LU that should help to advance efforts to integrate improve coordination and cooperation among various federal,
state, and local resource agencies and metropolitan planning Using that regional environmental framework and spatial devel-
organizations so that efforts to improve resource conservation opment probabilities from the Blueprint model, it was possible
are not negated by transportation infrastructure planning and to highlight sensitive resource areas most susceptible to devel-
development in the region. To address this new challenge the opment pressures. Identifying potentially at-risk resources can
Council embarked on a ambitious consultation effort. Over 20 help the region prepare comprehensive mitigation plans to mini-
resource agencies participated in this process, including U.S. EPA mize impacts to those resources. Participants in the consulta-
Regions 7 and 5, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Illinois EPA, tions were impressed by the possibilities of the modeling tool
Missouri and Illinois Department of Natural Resources, U.S. and expressed willingness to work with the Council in develop-
Department of Agriculture, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, ing the databases and evaluation methods needed to enhance
National Park Service, Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, its utility. The Council plans to maintain this consultation and
Illinois and Missouri Department of Agriculture, and a number the cooperative effort needed to refine the modeling and ana-
of local agencies involved in greenway planning and resource lytical approach and to build a regional resource database.
conservation.
The relationships and information sharing that occurred during
The overarching short-term goal for this year’s consultation this year’s process built the foundation for future long-range
effort was to begin fostering dialogue among resource agencies planning efforts. The long-term goals for this process are to
and Council staff so that all involved have a better understand- improve the way infrastructure is developed so that it is more
ing of regional priorities for resource conservation and environ- sensitive to the environmental context, including historical and
mental mitigation, to share data that would provide a regional cultural assets, area wildlife, and the ecosystems that support
environmental framework for analysis, and to develop long- them; to improve the decision-making process so that when
range environmental strategies for the plan. All agencies were infrastructure projects are advanced it is in harmony with efforts
active participants and were eager to share ideas and data to to restore fragmented habitats, to reduce loss of wildlife, to
support this effort protect historic resources, and to promote other resource con-
servation programs; to identify the greatest conservation and
As part of this effort, the Council used the Blueprint model to preservation needs associated with development of regionally
conduct an environmental stress analysis. The analysis evaluat- significant infrastructure projects; to better integrate regional
ed the extent to which future development would impinge on environmental goals and solutions into planning and infrastruc-
sensitive ecological, cultural, and historic areas over time. A ture development process; and to build an integrated long-
principal concern was the potential effect that the transporta- range planning process that engages state and federal resource
tion investments considered in the long-range plan would have agencies and other local stakeholders, including the public, in
on those resources. This analysis involved compiling a spatial working towards common sustainable development and
resource database and then overlaying future land development resource conservation goals. The outcome of this process will
probabilities (generated by the Blueprint model) on those hopefully result in the development of ecosystem level
mapped resources. Resources examined in the analysis included approaches to environmental mitigation, which can ultimately
prime farming soils, agricultural preservation areas, watersheds, improve ecosystem health by reestablishing the connections
303d streams and healthy streams, threatened and endangered between various ecosystems as opposed to traditional mitiga-
species, karst areas, and wetlands. The analysis also considered tion practices. Integrating an ecosystem approach to trans-
state conservation plans, greenway plans, and ecosystem portation planning, utilizing the Blueprint model, and employ-
restoration and stormwater management plans. ing a regional environmental framework will help assess the
cumulative effects of development, past, current and future, • Encourage and support comprehensive community planning
and provide a means for developing ecosystem based strategies among local governments by providing tools and data for
for mitigating development impacts in the future. The Council analysis, educational information on best practices in sustain-
will continue to engage resource agencies and broaden stake- able development, and other resources
holder involvement in future long-range planning efforts with
the intent of improving the sustainability of development prac- • Continue efforts to qualify major transit capital projects for
tices in the region. federal New Starts funding
The following strategies will guide the Council’s efforts in • Dedicate Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality funds to
the area of sustainable development: finance transportation control measures and other projects
that promise the highest reductions in congestion and vehicle
• Integrate arterial roadway design techniques, developed emissions in the most cost-effective manner
through the Great Streets Initiative, into transportation plan-
ning and programming processes to encourage better integra- • Require project sponsors to explicitly consider bicycle, pedes-
tion of streets within communities, incorporate access man- trian, and transit accommodations in developing projects for
agement and context sensitive strategies, accommodate vari- Transportation Improvement Program funding including
ous modes of travel, to enhance mobility for all system users strategies outlined in the St. Louis Regional Bicycle and
Walking Plan and East-West Gateway’s Great Streets Program
• Utilize the Digital Design Guide to education and inform to
local governments on strategies to create and maintain great • Work cooperatively with federal, state, and local resource
streets agencies with regulatory and management responsibilities
over natural, cultural, and historic assets in effort to integrate
• Continue to promote ridesharing, employer-based transit sub- our planning efforts to develop long-range mitigation strate-
sidy programs, and other demand management strategies gies to avoid, minimize, and mitigate impacts of infrastructure
projects
• Promote the use of existing transit systems as an alternative
to highway use • Develop a Regional Environmental Framework that identifies
and prioritizes relative importance of ecological, historical,
• Promote transportation and development actions that reduce and cultural assets
the need for travel, especially single occupant vehicle travel
• Encourage high-density, mixed use development at appropri-

ate MetroLink stations
• Emphasize the linkage between land use and transportation

through regional dialogue using the Regional Blueprint
process
• Support efforts to mitigate environmental impacts of infra-

structure projects using Ecosystem Based Mitigation, Multiple
Project Mitigation (in-lieu fees, conservation banks, mitigation
banks), and innovative project specific mitigation strategies
such as low-impact design
• Support efforts to mitigate environmental hazards and other

obstacles to the redevelopment of underutilized industrial and
commercial properties in the region’s core communities
• Foster dialogue between state and local governments, and

other regional stakeholders in efforts to develop proactive
regional strategies that promote consistency between trans-
portation improvements and state and local planned growth
and economic development
• Support the Clean Cities program and promote alternative

fuel use in major public and private vehicle fleets
• Encourage use of stormwater Best Management Practices in

both new and retrofit developments in urban, suburban
streets improvements through education programs and mate-
rial
• Support the Midwest High Speed Rail Initiative
• Support the continuation of passenger rail services in the

region
EFFICIENT MOVEMENT OF GOODS was transported domestically and internationally utilizing trucks
in 2006.30 In the future, trucks are anticipated to play an even
Overview greater role in goods movement. By 2035, the Federal Highway
Administration, through their Freight Analysis Framework
Today’s global economy demands more from our intermodal model, anticipates almost two thirds of the cargo, by weight
transportation system than ever before. Speed, reliability, and (65.5 percent), and about three quarters (75.9 percent), by
flexibility are key characteristics that businesses require from the value, will be transported by truck.
system to meet day to day needs. Even slight delays in receiv-
ing materials can disrupt the distribution chain, affecting prod- Many of the strategies identified within Legacy 2035, including
uct development to product delivery. Our region’s intermodal those focused on preservation, congestion management, and
transportation system is the backbone that supports our eco- safety and security, support the needs of the trucking industry
nomic position in the national and global marketplace. In order just as any other highway user. Moving trucks effectively and
to remain competitive over the long-term, the region must safely to and from various destinations also requires special geo-
focus on improving the critical connections between various metric configurations at intersections for turning; appropriate
modes—rail, air, or barge—and our surface transportation sys- widths, clearances and loading capacities for bridges; access to
tem, to increase reliability and maximize the use of our inter- businesses, industrial plants, airports, and ports; as well as good
modal facilities to obtain the highest efficiencies in the move- connections between intermodal sites and the national highway
ment of goods and services possible. Improving the efficiency system. Many freight stakeholders are deterred from participat-
in moving goods and services increases productivity, which ing in the planning process because of long planning horizons
translates into economic development for our region. conflict with the private business model, yet their involvement is
critical. Careful planning and coordination with stakeholders
St. Louis has a robust economy, yet recent trends are showing will enable optimal efficiency of freight movement and open up
the region is lagging behind national competitors. In 2004, the the door for further regional economic growth.
metropolitan area ranked 33rd among 35 peer metro areas with
a total Gross Metropolitan Product (the regional equivalent of Analysis
the Gross National Product) equaling $36,902 per capita.
Between 2001 and 2004 the GMP per capita grew at a rate of The flow of freight can be looked at as one of the indicators of
9.5 percent, nearly half the rate of growth of other metros such a region’s economic competitiveness. In the current global
as San Diego, Nashville and Memphis. Many areas have been economy, no region is completely self-sufficient. Efficiency dic-
strategically investing in their intermodal assets, knowing those tates that different areas specialize in primary goods and trade
assets will be fundamental elements of their economic future. them to other trading hubs. The proper flow of goods creates
balance by regions importing necessary supplies and exporting
The growing popularity of virtual warehouses (on demand ship- surpluses. This interdependence created by trade links cities,
ment which minimizes actual storage needs) has created the regions, people and economies.
need for products to be shipped in smaller quantities and to
more destinations. This has led to the emergence of trucks as St. Louis, due to its central geographic location and the pres-
the most popular method of transport. Within the United ence of the Mississippi River and other intermodal assets such as
States, it is estimated that almost half the cargo by weight airports, freight lines, and Interstate connectivity, is positioned
(48.74 percent), and over two-thirds (68.5 percent) by value, 30 DOT, Federal Highway Administration, Freight Analysis Framework, 2006 estimates based on 2002
Commodity Flow Survey.
Figure 3-38 to be a major player in national and international freight move-

ment. In addition to location, St. Louis’ workforce and quality
of life are drawing factors for businesses to the region who in
turn create further demands for the movement of goods and
services.31 When compared to the region’s peers, St. Louis
ranked 19th in total freight flow by value and 11th by weight.
According to the 2006 estimates, St. Louis shipped approxi-
mately 85 million tons of freight valued at $62 billion and
received about 124 million tons valued at $84 billion. Another
133 million tons of freight valued at $75 billion flowed internal-
ly within the St. Louis Region.32 Shipments came by roadways,
air, pipeline, water and rail. A majority of the freight, however,
was moved by truck.
National Truck Freight Flow map, Figure 3-39, illustrates the

flow of goods traveling by truck on highways across the coun-
try. In 2006, 62 percent of the total freight by weight in the St.
Louis Region was moved by truck. Thirty-four percent of the
freight imported, 62 percent of the freight exported, and 89
percent of the freight shipped internally made it to its destina-
tion via truck. It is important to note that for imports, pipeline
(39.8 percent) was the most prevalent method of transport,
supplying various fuels to maintain the region as a whole. Even
though pipelines were the most popular method of importing
goods, pipelines account for only about 15 percent of the over-
all freight movement. Trucks offer great flexibility in route time,
location and distance. Also, trucks allow for convenient local-
ized distribution of products and save purchasers time and has-
sle from having to pickup merchandise from centralized distri-
bution centers.
The growth in truck usage has lead to increased need for infra-
structure accommodation. Because of trucks’ weight and size,
local roads and ramps must be constructed with those large
vehicles in mind. This may include wider turning angles, higher
clearances, and wider lanes. Also, large trucks cause a
31 Fleishman-Hillard Research and Wilson Research Strategies, Summary of Greater St. Louis Brand
Development Research, Summer 2005.
32 DOT, Federal Highway Administration, Freight Analysis Framework, 2006 estimates based on 2002
Commodity Flow Survey.
Figure 3-39
vehicles in mind. This may include wider turning angles, higher local roads) that link the National Highway System and inter-
clearances, and wider lanes. Also, large trucks cause a dispro- modal rail terminals. The map includes the location of major
portionate amount of wear and tear on the road systems. In shippers and receivers with respect to the PGMN. Shippers and
traffic, large trucks have the traffic impact of almost four pas- receivers are identified if they are above 100 employees.
senger cars and reduce road capacity. Nationally, about 1 in 8.3 Currently, freight activity is concentrated in St. Louis City, near
traffic fatalities in 2005 resulted from accidents involving large Lambert-International Airport, Earth City, and the Westport-Page
trucks. In these fatal crashes, almost 85 percent of fatalities Industrial area, as well as along rail corridors. The PGMN will be
were people other than the truck driver.33 These figures point coupled with data, as it becomes available, to evaluate and plan
out safety concerns associated with utilizing large trucks as the for efficient regional freight movement.
focal point of freight transportation. Regionally, the problem
has worsened over the last five years. As pointed out in the Past Actions and Future Directions
Safety Section, truck related fatalities have risen 26 percent
between 2001 and 2005.34 In 1996, the Council convened a Freight Advisory Group to help
identify major issues and planning needs. That Group was
Figures 3-40 and 3-41 show the density of tractor-trailer trucks instrumental in the Council’s work to develop the report,
per land mile for the morning and evening peak traffic periods.35 Industry Perspectives and Recommendations for a Regional
Although, the data is from 2000, it is currently the most com- Freight Planning Process. Although challenges in working with
prehensive data available. Other truck related data is available the freight industries have slowed the implementation of those
at the corridor level. However, it only covers part of the region. recommendations, the Council has continued to build upon
Nevertheless, according to the Skycomp data, both truck density those efforts.
levels and the extent of heavy truck traffic were at their highest
during the evening peak hours. Over the last few years, the Council has been working with
stakeholders to better understand their needs and interests.
In an effort to provide a framework for evaluating goods move- Through this effort staff have begun developing an inventory of
ments, a Priority Goods Movement Network (PGMN) has been stakeholders and building relationships by conducting inter-
identified. This network, as shown in Figure 3-42, serves as a views and holding focused discussions on the topic.
framework for analyzing the system characteristics that influ- Stakeholders have been eager to share their experiences, and
ence goods movements and for defining infrastructure invest- recognize the importance of planning so that their long-term
ment needs. The PGMN consists of all roadway, rail, water and needs can be met, yet they have also expressed interest in tak-
air facilities that are critical to the efficient movement of freight ing a much more strategic and innovative approach to integrat-
throughout the region. For roadway freight movement, the ing their interests into the planning process, stressing the
PGMN includes 440 miles of highways, including all roads desig- importance of being respectful of their time and making the
nated as part of the National Highway System (NHS), and major process mutually beneficial, and results oriented. To prepare for
and minor arterial streets that connect ports, major airports and such an effort, the Council has been working to develop survey-
intermodal facilities. Also included are connectors (ramps and ing instruments, collecting data and contacts, and developing a
33 National Center for Statistics and Analysis, Traffic Safety Facts 2005, National Highway Traffic freight component to our traffic simulation model, which will
Safety Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, DOT HS 810 631.
ultimately provide a framework of information upon which to
34 MoDot, MHP, ISP, IDot develop such an approach.
35 Skycomp, Inc., Traffic Quality on the St. Louis Regional Highway System, prepared for the East-
West Gateway Coordinating Council, Spring 2000.
Figure 3-40
Map
Density of Tractor Trailer Trucks
per Lane Mile
Morning Peak Period
Figure 3-41
Map
Density of Tractor Trailer Trucks
per Lane Mile
Evening Peak Period
Figure 3-42
Map
Primary Goods Movement Network
shippers and receivers
In 2006, the Council also began a process to develop a

Metropolitan Area Aviation System Plan. This is a cooperative
effort among the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), IDOT,
MoDOT, and the Council. The purpose of the plan is to develop
strategies for greater coordination and integration of the
region’s major aviation assets including Lambert-St. Louis
International, Mid-America St. Louis, Spirit of St. Louis, St. Louis
Downtown Parks, and St. Louis Regional. Information gleaned
from this process will also serve to inform the development of
strategies to better integrate of various modes of transportation
to improve the movement of goods and people to and from the
region and improve economic viability over the long-term.
The following strategies will guide future Council efforts in

the area of efficient movement of goods:
• Develop a strategic regional intermodal freight investment

plan, in cooperation with the states and industry representa-
tives, by evaluating the efficiency of existing freight facilities,
identifying problems and opportunities, analyzing potential
solutions, and setting priorities
• Identify critical deficiencies affecting the efficient flow of

goods and develop projects for consideration in the
Transportation Improvement Program
• Support the Mississippi Valley Freight Coalition and other

regional efforts to improve cooperation in the planning, oper-
ation, preservation, and improvement of key transportation
infrastructure for improving efficiency of goods movement
across nationally
SECTION IV. TRANSPORTATION allocated or special funding. Decisions on which of these proj-
ects receive federal funds are made annually through the
INVESTMENT PLAN Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) managed by East-
West Gateway. The TIP identifies short-term (4 year) funding
A key objective of the long-range plan is outlining how federal commitments and represents the implementation program of
transportation funds will be spent over the planning period. the long-range plan. Projects that are not identified specifically
That objective is addressed in two ways. First, the plan estab- in this investment plan can still be financed with federal funds,
lishes policies and principles that govern decisions on the use of but they must be consistent with the policies, strategies, and
federal funds. Previous sections of this plan have outlined those actions established in this document.
criteria. Second, the plan develops a transportation investment
strategy that sets project priorities and then commits funds to Transportation Improvement Program
those priorities.
The Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) is a short-range
All transportation projects in the region using federal funds financing plan and schedule for transportation improvements
must first be identified in Legacy 2035 or be consistent with the proposed by various agencies and organizations in the St. Louis
principles of the long-range plan. The purpose of the trans- metropolitan area. Federal legislation requires that the East-
portation investment plan is to list specific projects recommend- West Gateway prepare and approve the TIP for the use of feder-
ed for federal funding through the plan’s horizon year. That list al funds on those projects. In addition, agencies and organiza-
cannot, however, be a wish list. By federal law the investment tions proposing to use state and local funds on projects that
plan must be fiscally constrained, meaning that reasonably might have significant effects on the region’s air quality are
anticipated revenues are sufficient to cover the costs of pro- required to submit those projects for inclusion in the TIP.
posed investments. Thus the investment plan must blend trans-
portation needs with financial realities, with part of that finan- TIP Project Evaluation and Selection Process
cial reality being the enormous cost of simply maintaining the
existing transportation system. This financial constraint is the The state DOTs submit projects proposed for funding under the
controlling factor in developing an investment plan. Federal Highway Administration’s Surface Transportation
Program (STP), National Highway System (NHS) Program,
The transportation investment plan does not include every Interstate Maintenance (I-M) Program, Highway Bridge Program,
transportation project in the region. It identifies only major and Highway Safety Improvement Program. The Council reviews
projects that will be implemented by the region’s principal these projects to ensure that they conform to the region’s air
transportation agencies—the Illinois Department of quality goals, are consistent with the long-range transportation
Transportation (IDOT), the Missouri Department of plan’s investment priorities, and are financially viable within the
Transportation (MoDOT), and Metro (formerly the Bi-State indicated program year. Following this review, the Council
Development Agency). It does not include many smaller proj- approves them as part of each state’s program.
ects or initiatives that will be financed with federal funds subal-
located directly to the region or allocated for specific programs. Metro, the St. Clair County Transit District, and the Madison
Many of the strategies and actions discussed in previous sec- County Transit District submit projects under the Federal Transit
tions of this plan, as well as projects routinely implemented by Administration’s (FTA) funding categories: Section 5307, Section
local jurisdictions and agencies, will be financed with such sub- 5309, and the Fixed Guideway program funding provided under
98 Transportation Investment Plan Legacy 2035
Section 5309. In addition, Metro submits projects that have For projects proposed for funding under the CMAQ program, an
received funding from the U.S. Department of Homeland additional consideration is whether the project would result in a
Security for security upgrades to rail and bus facilities. The reduction in vehicle emissions. The U.S. EPA has designated the
Council reviews these projects with respect to the region’s air St. Louis region as a “moderate” non-attainment area under the
quality goals, investment priorities, and financial viability. eight-hour ozone standard and as a non-attainment area with
Following this review, the Council approves the projects as part respect to the fine particle (PM2.5) standard. Because of these
of each transit agency’s program. In cases where transit agen- designations, any project not resulting in a reduction in vehicle
cies propose projects for funding under local funding programs, emissions is precluded from consideration for funding under the
Council staff evaluates these projects against the other projects CMAQ program in the St. Louis region.
submitted for consideration under these programs.
FY 2007-2010 TIP
Transit projects submitted by agencies that provide services to
elderly persons and persons with disabilities can be funded The FY 2007-2010 TIP as approved by the EWGCOG Board of
through FTA’s Section 5309 and Section 5310 programs. In Directors in July 2006 contains 734 projects costing $2.8 billion.
Missouri, these projects are selected based on need in a com- This TIP commits nearly 43% of the program (representing more
petitive process coordinated by MoDOT. In Illinois, IDOT selects than $1.18 billion) to preserving the existing infrastructure
these projects using a statewide evaluation process. (resurfacing and reconstructing roads, repairing/replacing
bridges, and replacing other aging transportation facilities).
Local governments can submit projects for funding under the Approximately 29% of the total program ($799 million) is allo-
Surface Transportation—Suballocated (STP-S), Surface cated to adding capacity in the form of new roads, new
Transportation Enhancements (STP-E), and Congestion bridges, and new through lanes on existing roads. Projects to
Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) programs in consultation improve the operations and/or safety of the region’s transporta-
with the MPO and the states. In addition, local governments can tion systems and facilities account for almost 11% of the total
submit bridge replacement and rehabilitation projects on feder- program ($300 million).
al aid highways and local roads for funding under the Highway
Bridge Program. Funding for improving and expanding the MetroLink light rail
system—the now completed Cross-County extension—accounts
Council staff evaluates these proposed local projects with for just over 6% of the total program ($172 million). Funding
respect to how well they address performance measures in each allocated for all non-MetroLink transit revenue vehicles, equip-
of the six priority areas identified in Legacy 2035. Council staff ment, facilities, and service represents just over 8% of the total
has refined these performance measures and incorporated them program ($223 million). Transportation system enhancements,
into the evaluation process for local transportation projects sub- such as bicycle and pedestrian programs and facilities and
mitted for TIP consideration. The performance measures are streetscape improvements, account for nearly 3% of the total
intended to be indicators of the magnitude of need of a submit- program ($72 million). The remaining 0.3% of the total program
ted improvement. These indicators, in conjunction with a deter- ($8 million) includes such investments as rideshare programs,
mination of cost effectiveness, are used to recommend invest- park-and-ride lots, and funding allocated for DOT staff training.
ments for inclusion in the TIP.
Following is a list of the major projects in the FY 2007-2010 TIP, Table 4-1
along with the total funding programmed for each project with- Major Capital Projects Considered in the Plan
in that time period: (year of expenditure dollars*)
IDOT Projects Number of Number of

• New Mississippi River Bridge project, including work on the I- Agency Projects Cost Corridors Cost
55 / I-64 / I-70 Tri-Level Interchange and on relocating Illinois
Route 3 – $477.7 million
• IL 255 (Alton Bypass), a new 4-lane expressway in Madison IDOT 5 $2,072 4 $2,242
County – $59 million MoDOT 47 $4,683 24 $2,810
• New I-255 / Davis St. Ferry Road interchange in St. Clair Metro 4 $4,932 0 $0
County – $24.8 million Total** 55 $11,687 27 $5,052
• Improvements to IL 158 from IL 3 to IL 15 in St. Clair and
Monroe counties – $23.9 million *For summaries, costs are expressed in year of expenditure, or 2023, dollars; 2023 is the mid-point
• Extension of US 67 (new 4-lane road) in Madison County – between 2011 and the plan’s 2035 horizon year.
$21.1 million **Eliminates double counting of New Mississippi River Bridge and
I-270 Corridor for IDOT and MoDOT
MoDOT Projects Source: East-West Gateway Council of Governments

• I-64 reconstruction project in St. Louis County and St. Louis Based on anticipated funding levels, priority projects are
City – $500 million assigned to one of three time periods for implementation:
• Widening of MO 100 from MO 47 to I-44 in Franklin County – 2011-2020, 2021-2030, and 2031-2035. If actual funding levels
$43.4 million are higher than anticipated in this plan, projects will move from
• MO 364 (Page Avenue Extension) / Harvester Road interchange longer to shorter time frames. Second is a list of illustrative
in St. Charles County – $35.9 million projects. These are projects that do not fit within the region’s
• New lanes and ramp reconstruction on MO 364 (Page Avenue) anticipated funding resources but will move to the priority list if
from Bennington to I-270 in St. Louis County – $29.8 million additional funding becomes available. Third is a recommended
• Improvements to US 40 from I-70 to west of Lake St. Louis list of future corridor studies. These are transportation corridors
Boulevard, including a new interchange at Prospect Road, in that have existing or emerging transportation problems, but the
St. Charles County – $27.4 million detailed planning required for evaluating needs and developing
• Widening and realignment of MO 21 from north of Lake project solutions has not been done. Future long-range plans
Lorraine to Hayden Road in Jefferson County – $25.5 million will consider projects emerging from these corridor studies.
• Bridge rehabilitations on I-55 from US 61/67 to 4500
Broadway in St. Louis County and St. Louis City – $15 million Fifty-five highway and transit projects costing nearly $11.7 bil-
lion (year of expenditure dollars) were evaluated in developing
Projects Considered for Plan Inclusion this plan. Projects were derived from previous long-range plans,
Major Transportation Investment Analyses, and other planning
The long-range transportation investment plan has three com- and environmental studies. A project typically is not considered
ponents. First is a list of investment priorities. These are proj- for inclusion in the plan until a detailed corridor or subarea
ects selected for funding within the region’s financial constraint. study is completed that establishes the need for the project,
evaluates optional solutions, and identifies an alternative that Financial Capacity Analysis
best meets the transportation need. In addition to those 55
projects, the plan identifies 27 transportation corridors that The analysis used to establish the financial constraint involves
warrant such detailed study. projecting future revenues and then comparing those revenue
streams to transportation costs. Financial projections were sup-
Financial projections for IDOT, MoDOT, and Metro indicate that plied by IDOT, MoDOT, and Metro and were adapted, where
the region will have about $25 billion in revenue available necessary, for regional use. Most IDOT and MoDOT revenue
between 2011 and 2035. That funding level is insufficient to comes from a mix of federal funds, state motor vehicle fees and
finance the $11.7 billion in major projects considered in this taxes, and state fuel taxes. Metro’s revenue comes from feder-
plan, or the potential $5 billion in projects that may emerge al, state, and local sources and passenger fares, with local sales
from the 27 corridor studies. The reason that $25 billion cannot taxes the major income source. Improvement cost information
cover a potential $16.7 billion in major project costs is the need was supplied by the implementing agencies or derived from
to adequately maintain and operate existing transportation planning studies. A 4 percent inflation rate was used for capital
assets. Properly maintaining highways, bridges, transit vehicles cost escalation, and all revenues and costs are expressed in year
and facilities, and financing existing transit operations will cost of expenditure dollars.
the region almost $21.6 billion during the 25 years covered by
this plan. Preservation and operation needs will account for 77 Table 4-3
percent of IDOT’s and almost 75 percent of MoDOT’s anticipat- IDOT Financial Capacity: 2011-2035
(year of expenditure dollars, millions)
ed revenue, and it will exceed the revenues available to Metro.
Regionally, preservation and operation needs will consume 86
percent of anticipated transportation revenues.
Total Revenue Expense $7,471
Additional Capital for TIP Projects $47
Table 4-2
Available Revenues and Major Uses: 2011-2035 Road & Bridge Preservation $5,758
(year of expenditure dollars, millions) Subtotal $5,805
Balance for Major Projects $1,666
Total Preservation/ TIP Major
Agency Revenue Operations Commitments Projects Costs for Major Projects $2,221
Total Balance ($555)
IDOT $7,471 $5,758 $47 $1,666 Other Projects in Study Corridors $2,242
MoDOT $7,120 $5,310 — $1,810 Source: East-West Gateway Council of Governments
Metro $10,482 $10,482 — $0
Total $25,073 $21,550 $47 $3,476 Revenues for IDOT and MoDOT were estimated statewide and
Total % 100% 86% 0.2% 14% then allocated to the local districts. The IDOT allocation for the
three counties making up the Illinois portion of the Gateway
Source: East-West Gateway Council of Governments region was assumed at 8.5 percent of the statewide program.
The MoDOT allocation for the district was assumed at 28.5 per-
cent of the statewide construction program. A series of motor
vehicle fee and fuel tax increases were assumed for Transportation Systems. The financial projection assumes that
Illinois, as well as additional general obligation bonding for beginning in fiscal year 2011 MoDOT will annually allocate $70
transportation. These assumptions are consistent with historical million for pavement preservation, $50 million for bridge preser-
trends. The only revenue increase assumed in Missouri was a 3 vation, and $7.5 million for traffic management and operations,
percent annual increase in the amount of federal funds received with each of the categories growing at the inflation rate. Those
by the state, although given the current state of the federal spending levels are necessary to sustain continuing improve-
highway trust fund, such an increase is far from certain. No ment in the condition of the region’s roads and bridges.
revenue enhancements were assumed for Metro, although the Meeting these preservation and operation spending goals, how-
impact of two revenue enhancement scenarios is discussed. ever, exceeds anticipated revenues by nearly $500 million
through the plan’s horizon year.
Illinois Department of Transportation
Forty-seven MoDOT projects are proposed for inclusion in the
IDOT will have an estimated $7.5 billion in revenue available for plan. Costs for these projects approach $5 billion, and that
projects in the St. Louis region between 2011 and 2035. More amount does not include the potential $2.8 billion in additional
than $5.7 billion of that total will go to maintain, rehabilitate, costs associated with projects in the 24 corridor studies. Unless
and upgrade roads and bridges, leaving IDOT with a balance of MoDOT’s revenues increase beyond the baseline financial projec-
almost $1.7 billion for major projects through the plan’s horizon tion, none of the projects identified in this plan can be built
year. That balance includes the $164 million federal earmark for without deferring pavement and bridge rehabilitation needs.
a new Mississippi River Bridge, as well as the $210 million com-
mitment of special Illinois funding. To establish MoDOT financial capacity, this plan assumes that
federal revenues available to the state will increase by 3 percent
Five IDOT projects are proposed for inclusion in the plan. Costs annually through the plan period, with no statewide funding
for these projects exceed $2.2 billion. Based on that figure, increases. Under this enhanced projection, MoDOT’s revenue
IDOT’s $1.7 billion available for new projects falls roughly $500 for projects in the St. Louis region would increase to $7.1 billion
million short of what is needed to complete the IL 3 relocation, over the life of the plan. This would enable MoDOT to fund
the I-64 tri-level interchange, the I-64 connector (if required), $1.7 billion in major projects through 2035, or just 35 percent
and the upgrade of IL 159 through Collinsville. If projects from of the costs associated with the 47 projects considered in this
the four study corridors in Illinois are included – I-270, US 50, plan, excluding the study corridors.
Gateway Connector (IL 158), and Madison County MetroLink –
are included, that shortfall increases to $2.8 billion. To assess the impact of a moderate state increase in funding, a
third revenue scenario was created. In addition to the annual
Missouri Department of Transportation increase in federal funds, it was assumed that there would be
an additional $200 million a year available for statewide alloca-
With no additional or enhanced revenue sources, the baseline tion in Missouri. Under this scenario, MoDOT’s revenues over
financial projection for MoDOT indicates that the agency will the plan period would rise to $8.7 billion, which remains nearly
have $4.8 billion in revenue available for projects in the region $1.5 billion short of what would is needed to fund all 47 proj-
between 2011 and 2035. This plan proposes that over $5.3 bil- ects identified in the plan. Fully funding the identified projects
lion will be used for road and bridge rehabilitation and traffic and projects emerging from the study corridors would require a
management and operations, including Intelligent statewide revenue increase of nearly $800 million a year, as well
as the proposed increase in federal revenue. Even with a rev- Missouri MetroLink extensions identified in this plan. Building
enue increase of that magnitude, however, it would still require just two of those routes over the next three decades would
28 years before all the projects identified in this plan were increase Metro’s operating and capital requirement to over $15
funded. billion. Even with federal funds covering half of the construc-
tion expense, Metro’s revenues would still be short by almost
Table 4-4 $3.3 billion unless there was a substantial increase in state or
MoDOT Financial Capacity: 2011-2035 local revenue.
While no revenue enhancements were considered in establishing
Revenue Scenario Metro’s financial capacity, two revenue scenarios were examined
Enhanced New State
to determine their impact on the agency’s financial situation.
Baseline Baseline Revenue
The first option is voter approval of the additional ¼ percent
Proposition M sales tax. In the early 1990s, the Missouri
Total Revenue Expense $4,846 $7,120 $8,704 General Assembly authorized a sales tax for public transporta-
Road & Bridge Preservation $4,998 $4,998 $4,998 tion in St. Louis City and County not to exceed ½ percent, sub-
Management & Operations $312 $312 $312 ject to voter approval. Shortly thereafter, voters in the City and
Subtotal $5,310 $5,310 $5,310 County approved a ¼ percent sales tax increase. In a subse-
quent election, voters in the City approved an additional ¼ per-
Balance for Major Projects ($464) $1,735 $3,394
cent levy, which would have brought the Proposition M sales tax
Costs for Major Projects $4,932 $4,932 $4,932 levy to the authorized ½ percent, but voters in the County
Total Balance ($5,396) ($3,197) ($1,462) rejected the increase. While the issue does not have to be
Other Projects in Study $2,810 $2,810 $2,810 resubmitted in the City, it does have to pass in the County
Corridors before the additional ¼ percent is levied in both jurisdictions.
The additional Proposition M sales tax would raise approximate-
ly $50 million a year for Metro. That increased revenue likely
would be sufficient for Metro to sustain the existing system
Metro Transit System through the plan’s horizon year, although it would be insuffi-
cient to cover the cost of a major MetroLink expansion.
The financial projection for Metro indicates the agency will have
$10.5 billion in revenue between 2011 and 2035. This falls $1.7 Another financing scenario is an increase equivalent to a ½ per-
billion short of $12.2 billion the agency will need simply to sus- cent sales tax increase in St. Louis City and County. This could
tain existing transit levels. Most of that deficit will fall on the be accomplished through either a state-funding package, cou-
operating side of the transit system, translating into a continu- pled with the Proposition M increase, or a local sales tax initia-
ing spiral of service reductions. Unless additional revenues tive. Such an increase would raise approximately $100 million a
become available, the future of the regional transit system is year.
problematic.
An influx of $100 million a year in new state or local revenue to
With a $1.7 billion shortfall based on existing revenue streams, Metro is necessary if MetroLink is to be expanded in Missouri.
Metro cannot begin to consider implementing any of the four With that additional revenue, and a 50 percent federal share for
construction costs, Metro could build and operate two this plan, consistent with recent action of the Council’s Board of
MetroLink extensions in St. Louis City and County over the next Directors and with deliberations taking place between the two
28 years. state departments of transportation.
Transportation Investment Plan This plan assumes a new four-lane bridge, costing approximate-
ly $550 million. This proposal is consistent with the MLK
The accompanying tables list the projects compris-
ing the priority transportation investment plan for Table 4-5
the region. The tables show the projects that fit Metro Financial Capacity: 2011-2035
within the region’s financial (year of expenditure dollars, millions)
constraint and are, thereby, recommended for pri-
ority implementation; the illustrative projects that Add¼%
will advance to the priority list if additional fund- Baseline Prop.
ing becomes available; and the corridors that are Expense Revenue Balance M Balance
recommended for further study. Project priorities
were established through a two-step process. Maintain
First, East-West Gateway staff analyzed each proj- Existing System
ect within a quantitative evaluation framework.
Capital $2,623 $2,833 $210 $2,859 $236
That framework consists of performance measures
based on the six focus areas used by the Council Operating $9,594 $7,649 ($1,945) $9,389 ($206)
to guide decision-making: preservation, safety, Total $12,217 $10,482 ($1,735) $12,247 $30
congestion, access to opportunity, goods move-
ment, and sustainable development. After proj- New ½ %
ects were evaluated, a priority ranking was estab- Expense Equiv. Balance
lished. These rankings were then shared with and
compared to priorities of the implementing agen- Maintain
cies, and discussions between East-West Gateway Existing System
and the implementing agencies produced the final Capital $2,623 $4,419 $1,796
list. Operating $9,594 $9.594 $0
A special note is in order concerning the new Total $12,217 $14,013 $1,796
Mississippi River Bridge. For the last decade, con- MetroLink
struction of a new downtown bridge across the Expansion
Mississippi River has been a top regional priority. Capital $4,693 $4,938 $245)
It became evident, however, that the cost of the Operating $10,545 $10,545 $0
new signature bridge, which approached $2 billion Total $15,238 $15,483 $245
for the span and connecting roadways, was
beyond the region’s financial capacity. Thus, a Source: East-West Gateway Council of Governments
scaled-back version of the bridge is proposed in
Coupler concept or with a new four-lane structure on the same

alignment as the original bridge plan. Currently, there is a $239
million federal earmark set aside for a new bridge, and IDOT has
committed another $210 million, with prospects for additional
special funding from Illinois to finance the span. If a four-lane
bridge proceeds, Missouri’s relatively minor contribution would
fit within the region’s financial constraint with minimal effect
on other projects. Depending on the specific bridge proposed
through the on-going deliberations between the states and
regional leaders, some rearranging of Illinois investment priori-
ties might be required.
The priority investment plan costs nearly $24 billion dollars. The
great majority of costs—86 percent—are associated with high-
way and transit preservation/operation needs. Along with those
major expenditure categories, for which no specific projects are
identified, the plan contains 18 highway improvement projects
costing $3.3 billion. Almost three-quarters of the major projects
involve upgrading Interstates and freeways.
Table 4-6
Priority Project Cost by Improvement Type: 2011-2035
(year of expenditure, millions)
Major Improvement Category Number Cost
Existing TIP Commitments — $47

Preservation/Operation:
Highways — $11,068
Transit — $10,482
Total Preservation $21,550
Major Projects:
Interstate/Freeway Upgrade 13 $2,497
Major Arterial Relocation 2 $525
Major Arterial Upgrade 3 $236
Total Major Projects 18 $3,258
Total Plan 18 $24,855
Table 4-7
Investment Priorities—Projects funded within the region’s financial constraint
Investment/Period Sponsor Description County Location Cost (YOE)
Period: 2011-2020
Preservation/Operations IDOT/MoDOT Rehabilitation/operational improvements MultiCounty Regionwide $2,991
Transit Operations Metro Maintain existing transit system MultiCounty St. Louis City/Co./St. Clair $3,404
New Miss. River Bridge IDOT/MoDOT Construct new bridge and connections St. Clair/St. Louis City Mississippi River $550
IL 159 IDOT Widen, revise intersections Madison/St. Clair South Morrison to Belt Line $60
IL 3 partial IDOT Relocate, four lane Madison/St. Clair Venice to Cahokia $173
I-64 partial IDOT Construct tri-level interchange St. Clair I-64 and I-55/70 interchange $78
US 40 MoDOT Construct new bridge St. Charles/St. Louis Missouri River $222
MO 364 (Phase 2) MoDOT Upgrade to freeway (MO 94) St. Charles w/o Harvester to MO N $137
MO 141 MoDOT Relocate, four lane St. Louis I-64 to MO 340 $164
Period: 2021-2030
Transit Operations Metro Maintain existing transit system MultiCounty St. Louis City/Co. and St. Clair $4,388
IL 3 partial IDOT Relocate, four lane Madison/St. Clair Venice to Cahokia $188
I-44 MoDOT Revise interchange Franklin North Pacific interchange $16
I-55 MoDOT Revise interchange Jefferson MO M interchange $51
I-55 MoDOT Add lanes, revise interchanges Jefferson MO M to US 67 $178
I-70 MoDOT Add lanes St. Charles MO Z to Pearce $71
I-70 MoDOT Revise interchange St. Charles MO K interchange $69
I-170 MoDOT Interchange/mainline improvements St. Louis MO D to I-64 $301
I-270 MoDOT Revise interchange St. Louis I-270/Page – south to east flyover $38
Riverview Dr (Route H) MoDOT Upgrade to parkway St. Louis City Hall St to I-270 $69
Table 4-7 (continued)

Investment Priorities – Projects funded within the region’s financial constraint
Investment/Period Sponsor Description County Location Cost (YOE)
Period: 2031-2035
Transit Operations Metro Maintain existing transit system MultiCounty St. Louis City/Co. and St. Clair Co. $2,690
I-64 Connector partial IDOT Construct roadway connector St. Clair I-64 to New Miss. River Bridge $282
MO MM MoDOT Realign, upgrade existing Jefferson MO 21 to MO 30 $107
I-44 MoDOT Revise interchange St. Louis Shrewsbury interchange $72
Figure 4-1
Map
Legacy 2035 Investment Plan
Draft Priority Projects
Table 4-8
Illustrative Projects – Projects that will move onto the priority list as financing becomes available
Route/Corridor Sponsor Description County Location Cost (YOE)
I-44 MoDOT Add lanes Franklin Pacific to MO 100 $51

I-44 MoDOT Revise interchange Franklin MO 185 interchange $61
US 50 MoDOT Realign, add lanes Franklin MO EE to I-44 $294
US 50 MoDOT Realign, four lane Franklin MO EE to Gasconade County $144
US 50 MoDOT Widen Franklin Denmark to I-44 $26
MO 47 MoDOT New bridge Franklin Missouri River $215
MO 47 MoDOT Add lanes Franklin US 50 to I-44 $49
MO 47 MoDOT Add lanes Franklin Washington to US 50 $49
MO 100 MoDOT Realign, construct interchange Franklin e/o Gray Summit (MO 100) $184
MO 100 MoDOT Add lanes Franklin/St. Louis MO T to MO OO $53
MO 100 MoDOT Add lanes Franklin MO 47 to Pottery $26
MO 100 MoDOT Widen shoulders Franklin MO E to Gasconade County $14
MO F MoDOT Realign, construct RR overpass Franklin RR overpass $24
MO 21 MoDOT Relocate, four lane Jefferson MO B to MO N & H $166
MO W MoDOT Upgrade Jefferson MO 30 to Eureka $43
I-70 MoDOT Add lanes St. Charles Wentzville Pkway to Foristell $47
I-70 MoDOT Construct interchange St. Charles MO W & MO T $75
I-70 MoDOT Revise interchanges St. Charles 5th to Mid Rivers Mall $203
US 61 MoDOT Upgrade to Interstate St. Charles MO A to Lincoln Co. $140
MO 94 MoDOT Reconstruct two lane St. Charles MO 370 to MO B $12
MO 364 (Phase 3) MoDOT Construct new six lane roadway St. Charles MO 94 to US 40 $284
MO N MoDOT Reconstruct to three lane St. Charles US 40 to MO Z $45
MO Z MoDOT Reconstruct to three lane St. Charles I-70 to MO N $24
Table 4-8 continued

Illustrative Projects—Projects that will move onto the priority list as financing becomes available
(millions of $2007)
Route/Corridor Sponsor Description County Location Cost (YOE)
I-44 MoDOT Revise interchange St. Louis MO 109 interchange $128

I-64 MoDOT Add collector/distributor lanes St. Louis Boone’s Crossing to Spirit Blvd $59
I-64 MoDOT Construct interchanges St. Louis Spirit Blvd & Long Rd $162
I-170 MoDOT Interchange/mainline improvements St. Louis I-270 to Scudder $97
I-270 MoDOT Revise Interchange St. Louis US 67 (Lindbergh) $43
MO 109 MoDOT Construct four lane parkway St. Louis MO BA to s/o Westridge Oaks $65
MO 340 MoDOT Construct interchange St. Louis Baxter Rd interchange $67
MO 367 MoDOT Upgrade to parkway St. Louis I-270 to Halls Ferry Circle $115
MO D MoDOT Upgrade to expressway St. Louis Schuetz to Lindbergh $115
MD. Hgts. Express. TBA Construct new road St. Louis MO 340 to Creve Coeur Mill $101
MetroSouth LRT Metro Construct new light rail route St. Louis Shrewsbury to south St. Louis Co $1,134
MetroNorth LRT Metro Construct new light rail route St. Louis Clayton to I-270/Florissant $1,033
Daniel Boone LRT Metro Construct new light rail route St. Louis Clayton/MetroLink to Westport $1,074
NSide/SSide LRT Metro Construct new light rail route St. Louis City/Co. StL CBD to north St. Louis Co $1,823
Figure 4-2
Map
Draft Illustrative Projects
Table 4-9
Recommended Future Corridor Studies
Route/Corridor Sponsor Description County Location
I-44 MoDOT Corridor Study Franklin Crawford Co. to MO 100

MO 100 MoDOT Corridor Study Franklin Gasconade Co. to MO 47
MO 30 MoDOT Corridor Study Franklin Jefferson Co. to I-44
US 61/67 MoDOT Corridor Study Jefferson McNutt Rd. to MO A

US 67 MoDOT Corridor Study Jefferson I-55 to St. Francois Co.
MO 30 MoDOT Corridor Study Jefferson Franklin Co. to end of 4-lane section
MO 30 MoDOT Corridor Study Jefferson St. Louis Co. to MO MM
MO Z MoDOT Corridor Study Jefferson I-55 to US 61/67
I-270 IDOT/MoDOT Corridor Study Madison/St. Louis City/Co. IL 111 to Jefferson Barracks Bridge
MetroLink Extension MCT Corridor Study Madison/St. Clair Existing MetroLink to Tri-Cities
MO 79 MoDOT Corridor Study St. Charles I-70 to Lincoln Co.

MO 370 MoDOT Corridor Study St. Charles MO 370 to MO 79
MO K MoDOT Operational Study St. Charles US 40 to I-70
MO M MoDOT Corridor Study St. Charles I-70 to MO 79
MO P MoDOT Corridor Study St. Charles MO M to US 61
MO Z MoDOT Corridor Study St. Charles I-70 to MO N
US 50 IDOT Corridor Study St. Clair Lebanon to Clinton Co.

Gateway Connector IDOT Corridor Study (IL 158) St. Clair/Madison/Monroe Troy to Columbia
I-44 MoDOT Interchange Study St. Louis MO 141 interchange

I-70 MoDOT Interchange Study St. Louis I-70/I-270 interchange
Table 4-9 continued

Recommended Future Corridor Studies
Route/Corridor Sponsor Description County Location
US 67 MoDOT Corridor Study St. Louis I-270 to MO AC

MO 100 MoDOT Intersection/Interchange Study St. Louis MO 340 intersection
MO 141 MoDOT Corridor Study St. Louis/Jefferson MO 30 to I-55
MO 340 MoDOT Operational Study St. Louis US 67 to St. Louis City limits
MO D MoDOT Corridor Study St. Louis US 67 to St. Louis City limits
I-44 MoDOT Corridor/Interchange Study St. Louis City I-55 to St. Louis City Limits
I-55 MoDOT Corridor/Interchange Study St. Louis City Poplar Street Bridge to St. Louis City limits
Figure 4-3
Intentionally blank
Legacy 2035 Air Quality Conformity 115
SECTION V AIR QUALITY Protection Agency (IEPA), were approved by EPA on May 12,
2003. As a result, the entire eight-county St. Louis region is
CONFORMITY now classified as a maintenance area for the one-hour ozone
standard. However, as of June 15, 2004, the St. Louis area, as
The expectation of a clean and healthy environment is one of well as other metropolitan areas around the nation, was re-des-
the regional goals specified in this plan. To that end, the ignated by EPA as a non-attainment area for the new more
Council established the following objective for the transporta- restrictive eight-hour ozone standard and has been given a
tion planning process: to reduce transportation-related air pollu- moderate non-attainment classification under this new stan-
tion in accordance with federal, state and local health standards dard. The eight-hour non-attainment area includes Franklin,
and priorities. Jefferson, St. Charles and St. Louis counties and the City of St.
Louis in Missouri and Jersey, Madison, Monroe and St. Clair
The specific procedures for reaching that objective are those counties in Illinois.
established under federal law for ensuring conformity between
transportation plans and air quality improvement plans. The In April 2005, USEPA designated the entire eight-county St.
conformity process is intended to ensure that the programs and Louis region as being in non-attainment of the fine particle
activities proposed in long-range transportation plans conform material (PM2.5) standard, as well as other metropolitan areas
to the purpose of the State Implementation Plans for Air throughout the nation. The PM 2.5 non-attainment area
Quality. As stated in the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 includes: Franklin, Jefferson, St. Charles and St. Louis counties
(CAAA), this means “…conformity to the (implementation) and the City of St. Louis in Missouri; and Madison, Monroe and
plan’s purpose of eliminating or reducing the severity and num- St. Clair Counties in Illinois. Baldwin Township in Randolph
ber of violations of the national ambient air quality standards County, Illinois is also part of this non-attainment area.
and achieving expeditious attainment of such standards…” The
provisions of the CAAA in relation to conformity are amplified in Under provisions of the CAAA, East-West Gateway, as the
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Final Rule, CFR Part Metropolitan Planning Organization for the region, is the
93, as amended July 1, 2004 and May 6, 2005.36 New timelines agency responsible for making the determination of conformity.
and procedures were set out in SAFETEA-LU. The conformity finding relates to those pollutants produced by
automobiles and other road transportation, generally described
Air Quality Conformity Process as mobile source emissions. The pollutants of concern in this
region are ozone and fine particles. Ozone is not, however, pro-
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) uses the term duced directly by automobiles. It results from chemical reac-
attainment area to describe those areas where air quality meets tions in the lower atmosphere involving various compounds in
health standards for particular air borne pollutants. In 2002, automobile exhausts that are identified as the precursor of
the St. Louis region attained the one-hour ozone standard, ozone formation. These compounds comprise two groups,
based on three years of air quality monitoring data for the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and oxides of nitrogen
2000–2002 time period. The redesignation request and (NOx). Fine particles are less than 1/30 the width of a human
Maintenance Plans, prepared by the Missouri Department of hair. The PM2.5 mobile source components of interest are direct
Natural Resources (MoDNR) and the Illinois Environmental PM2.5 from vehicle exhaust, brake wear and tire wear and NOx
(as a precursor to PM2.5 formation).
36 These provisions are interpreted in the context of 1999 Court decisions relating to the conformity
process, and guidance to this effect is contained in the U.S. EPA Memorandum of May 14, 1999,
Conformity Guidance on Implementation of the March 2, 1999 Conformity Court Decision.
116 Air Quality Conformity Legacy 2035
Benchmarks against which progress is measured in meeting • Emissions of VOC resulting from the plan’s 2014, 2020, 2030
national goals for cleaner and healthier air are set out in the and 2035 implementation will be less than the 2014 budgets
State Implementation Plans (SIPs). Preparation of SIPs is the in the maintenance plans, i.e. 47.14 tons per day in Missouri
responsibility of each state. The present Determination of and 10.13 in Illinois (See Table 5-1).
Conformity for the Missouri part of the region is made in rela-
tion to the Missouri Maintenance Plan, which was approved by • Emissions of NOx resulting from the plan’s 2007 and 2010
the EPA on May 12, 2003. The Determination of Conformity for implementation will be less than the 2007 budgets in the
the Illinois part of the region is made in relation to the Illinois maintenance plans, i.e. 130.55 tons per day in Missouri and
Maintenance Plan, which was approved on May 12, 2003. The 36.87 tons per day in Illinois (See Table 5-2).
primary purpose of the conformity process is to ensure that pre-
dicted future mobile emissions resulting from planned and pro- • Emissions of NOx resulting from the plan’s 2014, 2020, 2030
grammed transportation projects (the Action scenario) fall and 2035 implementation will be less than the 2014 budgets
below the 2007 and 2014 emission budget levels set out in the in the maintenance plans, i.e. 68.59 tons per day in Missouri
maintenance plans for both VOC and NOx. and 18.72 tons per day in Illinois (See Table 5-2).
As Missouri and Illinois are in the process of developing PM2.5 Based on the conformity analysis for ozone conducted as part of
SIPs and associated budgets, Federal Regulations set out an the long-range plan development, as shown in the following
interim Conformity Determination process. The principal step is tables, the projects and programs included in Legacy 2035
to demonstrate, for the selected analysis years, that the predict- (including FY 2008-2011 TIP) are found to be in conformity with
ed future mobile emissions resulting from planned and pro- the requirements of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, the
grammed transportation projects (Action scenario) is less than relevant sections of the Final Conformity Rule 40 CFR Part 93,
the combined 2002 baseline emissions inventories developed by and the Missouri State Conformity Regulations 10 CSR 10-5.480.
Missouri and Illinois for the entire PM2.5 non-attainment area. The finding is documented in companion report, Air Quality
Since the St. Louis area is in non-attainment of the annual PM2.5 Conformity Determination and Documentation.
standard, annual emissions are to be used.
Jersey County in Illinois is not included in the East-West
Air Quality Conformity Determination Gateway region but is included in the eight-hour ozone non-
attainment area for St. Louis. IDOT is the lead agency in over-
Ozone seeing the conformity determination process for Jersey County.
Mobile source emission estimates for the County which have
Federal and state regulations require that projects included in been included in the overall emissions analysis and resulting
Legacy 2035 (including the FY 2008-2011 TIP) must pass the fol- tests can be found in Appendix H of the companion report, Air
lowing emissions test for each of six analysis years, 2007, 2010, Quality Conformity Determination and Documentation.
2014, 2020, 2030 and 2035:
• Emissions of VOC resulting from the plan’s 2007 and 2010

implementation will be less than the 2007 budgets in the
maintenance plans, i.e. 74.46 tons per day in Missouri and
16.31 tons per day in Illinois (See Table 5-1).
PM2.5 Table 5-1

Regional Emissions Analysis:
Federal and State regulations require that projects included in Conformity Tests for Volatile Organic Compounds
Legacy 2035 (including the FY 2008-2011 TIP) must pass the fol- (tons per day)
lowing emissions test for each of the four analysis years, 2010,
2020, 2030 and 2035: Tests
2007 Analysis Year Action / 2007 Budget
• Emissions of direct PM2.5 resulting from the plan’s 2010, 2020, Missouri 53.863 / 74.460
2030 and 2035 implementation will be less than the 2002 Result Pass
baseline emissions inventory for the entire non-attainment Illinois 12.697 / 16.310
area, i.e. 1,696.584 tons per year (see Table 5-3). Result Pass
• Emissions of NOx (as a precursor) resulting from the plan’s Missouri 44.953 / 74.460
2010, 2020, 2030 and 2035 implementation will be less than Result Pass
the 2002 baseline emissions inventory for the entire non- Illinois 7.740 / 16.310
attainment area, 84,246.749 tons per year (see Table 5-4).
Result Pass
Based on the conformity analysis conducted for PM2.5 as part of
the long-range plan development, as shown in the following Missouri 30.903 / 47.140
tables, the projects and programs included in the Legacy 2035 Result Pass
(including the FY 2008-2011 TIP) are found to be in conformity Illinois 4.564 / 10.130
with the requirements of the Clean Air Act Amendments of Result Pass
1990, the relevant sections of the Final Conformity Rule 40 CFR 2020 Analysis Year Action / 2014 Budget
Part 93 and the Missouri State Conformity Regulations 10 CSR Missouri 20.317 / 47.140
10-5.480. This finding is documented in companion report, Air Result Pass
Quality Conformity Determination and Documentation. Illinois 2.441 / 10.130
Result Pass
Baldwin Township in Randolph County in Illinois is not included 2030 Analysis Year Action / 2014 Budget
in the East-West Gateway region but is included in the PM2.5 Missouri 16.173 / 47.140
non-attainment area for St. Louis. IDOT is the lead agency in Result Pass
overseeing the conformity determination process for Baldwin Illinois 2.068 / 10.130
Township. The mobile source emissions estimates for the Result Pass
Township which have been included in the overall emissions
2035 Horizon Year Action / 2014 Budget
analysis and resulting test can be found in Appendix I of the
Missouri 16.704 / 47.140
companion report, Air Quality Conformity Determination and
Result Pass
Documentation.
Illinois 2.278 / 10.130
Result Pass
Table 5-2 Table 5-3

Regional Emissions Analysis: Regional Emissions Analysis:
Conformity Tests for Oxides of Nitrogen Conformity Test for Direct PM2.5 (tons per year)
(tons per day)
Test
Tests
2010 Analysis Year Action / 2002 Inventory
Missouri 645.356 / 1,371.824
Missouri 106.111 / 130.550
Result Pass Illinois 184.760 / 324.760
Illinois 27.669 / 36.870 Non-Attainment Area 830.116 / 1,696.584
Result Pass Result Pass
2010 Analysis Year Action / 2007 Budget 2020 Analysis Year Action / 2002 Inventory
Missouri 81.873 / 130.550 Missouri 376.830 / 1,371.824
Result Pass
Illinois 111.671 / 324.760
Illinois 18.574 / 36.870
Non-Attainment Area 488.501 / 1,696.584
Result Pass
2014 Analysis Year Action / 2014 Budget Result Pass
Missouri 50.380 / 68.590 2030 Analysis Year Action / 2002 Inventory
Result Pass Missouri 358.438 / 1,371.824
Illinois 9.509 / 18.720 Illinois 108.911 / 324.760
Result Pass Non-Attainment Area 467.349 / 1,696.584
Result Pass
Missouri 25.650 / 68.590
2035 Horizon Year Action / 2002 Inventory
Result Pass
Illinois 3.271 / 18.720 Missouri 363.775 / 1,371.824
Result Pass Illinois 111.167 / 324.760
2030 Analysis Year Action / 2014 Budget Non-Attainment Area 474.942 / 1,696.584
Missouri 14.031 / 68.590 Result Pass
Result Pass
Illinois 0.696 / 18.720
Result Pass
2035 Horizon Year Action / 2014 Budget
Missouri 13.501 / 68.590
Result Pass
Illinois 0.591 / 18.720
Result Pass
Table 5-4
Regional Emissions Analysis:
Conformity Test for Oxides of Nitrogen (tons per year)
Test
Missouri 34,412.500 / 67,877.515
Illinois 8,939.242 / 16,368.749
Non-Attainment Area 43,351.742 / 84,246.264
Result Pass
Missouri 12,840.034 / 67,877.515
Illinois 3,063.503 / 16,368.749
Result Pass
2030 Analysis Year Test
Action / 2002 Inventory
Missouri 8,338.066 / 67,877.515
Illinois 2,082.847 / 16,368.749
Result Pass
2035 Horizon Year Action / 2002 Inventory
Missouri 8,157.997 / 67,877.515
Illinois 2,059.823 / 16,368.749
Result Pass
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Legacy 2035: St. Louis Regional Transportation Plan by East-West Gateway

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Legacy 2035

The preparation of this document was financed in part by the

the pivotal Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of

Regional Goals Framework for Decision-Making

adults, and persons with disabilities. In 2004, the Council con-

A Legacy for the Future

The primary goal of Legacy 2035, as the name implies, is to cre-

In the past few decades, technological advances have given

Source: East-West Gateway Council of Governments

Although the following trends may not be precisely quantified,

• Those between 65 and 79 will continue to be part of the labor

Source: East-West Gateway Council of Governments

Jurisdiction 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035

Source: East-West Gateway Council of Governments

Table 2-2 suburbs, additional reverse commute programs, or job cre-

The region’s employment base is expected to expand from 1.32

Click on the link below to display Figure 2-4

• By 2035, the region will have fully incorporated the effects of

• Daily traffic patterns are affected by the growth of the mobile

Click on the link below to display Figure 2-6

• Between 1980 and 2005, income and wealth became increas-

Source: East-West Gateway Council of Governments

How will we support it all?

Alternative transportation fuels hold significant promise in lead-

bridge to an energy future based on hydrogen. Hydrogen is the

Elaborating on a vision for a hydrogen future, President George

2035: It’s Not a Done Deal

2035 can be what we make it.

• Preservation of existing infrastructure. Maintaining the cur-

• Safety and security in travel. Decreasing the risk of personal

• Congestion Management. Ensuring that congestion on the

PRESERVATION OF EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE Figure 3-1

The Council was progressive nearly 15 years ago when it estab-

Click on the link below to display Figure 3-2

If left untreated, transportation infrastructure will deteriorate. Figure 3-3

Figure 3-2 shows the condition of state maintained roads within

of region. In 1995, only 21 percent of the Interstate roads, and

Conditions vary a great deal by county, as well. Investments

Although the conditions do vary among state and roadway sys-

Even with the great strides made towards improving roadway

The states do have responsibility over a small number of minor

Interstate Principal Arterial Other All

Interstate 3.0 3.2 1.7 5.4 4.9 0 0 0 4.6 0 3.6

Future highway preservation investments should continue plac- Table 3-3

Click on the link below to display Figure 3-6

Source: MoDOT, IDOT

Metro has been proactive in managing their capital assets over

Source: MoDOT, IDOT

Vehicle Type Number of Useful Life Actual Percent of Number

Madison County Transit

Source: Metro and Madison County Transit

Nearly 70 percent or X Dollars of the investments identified in

Analysis Figure 3-9

Recent trends show traffic safety is improving in the region.

Source: Missouri Highway Patrol, IDOT

Click on the link below to display Figure 3-12

Walking and bicycling is more common in the City of St. Louis

A number of safety initiatives have focused on reducing the use

In 2000, 14 percent of drivers were 65 and older, by 2035 that

St. Louis City 860 18,203 4.5%

Source: MoDot (Average 2003-2005), IDOT (Average 2004-2005), US Census

Transit Regional Security

A Regional Travelsafe Communities Congress was also organized