Public Meeting Set for Tuesday,
April 19
On U.S. 160 Project West of Ash Grove
MoDOT, District 8, Springfield --
A public meeting to discuss a design to straighten curves approaching
the U.S. 160 bridge over the Sac River is scheduled for Tuesday,
April 19, in Ash Grove.
The meeting will be open house-style
and will run from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. in Ash Grove City Hall.
Engineers from MoDOT will be on hand
to talk one on one with visitors and go over displays and data
that explain the project.
The project is intended to:
* Straighten the approach to the bridge
on the west side, essentially moving that curve further west and
making the curve more gradual and easier to drive.
* Reduce the sharpness two curves
on the east side of the bridge.
* Widen the roadway by 3-1/2 feet
on the inside of all three curves.
A study shows that most of the reported
accidents on U.S. 160 in the project area in the past five years
have taken place on the curves approaching the bridge.
The bridge itself, built in 1926,
is in good physical condition and does not need to be replaced
as planned in a previous design. Keeping the existing bridge in
place saves about $3 million in construction, land acquisition
and utility relocation costs.
The project addressing the curves
-- estimated to cost about $1.2 million -- must be approved by
the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission.
If the project is approved, construction
will take place no sooner than the summer of 2006 and could be
scheduled in 2007.
(For more information,
call MoDOT in Springfield at 417-895-7600 or toll-free at 1-888-ASK-MoDOT.)
