From what I have seen, several sections of US 36 across Missouri (especially from Macon to Hannibal) hint at a possible expansion of I-72 in the future, but nothing has been announced/confirmed yet. Most of the route that could be extended (sooner than later) is between New Cambria and Hannibal. Of the roughly 157 miles between Hannibal and Cameron (the future western terminus, based on Exit 157 in Hannibal), about 41 miles are actually at Interstate standards, about 26% of the route. However, there are many glaring issues keeping MoDOT from extending 72.
Issues with 36 (as of right now):(1) There are a metric TON of county roads and/or driveways that connect back to 36. Most of these have long enough driveways to the point where they could be connected back to outer roads at some point, but there are a few houses/businesses, such as the Eagle's Nest Café south of Meadville, that lie right next to the highway. These are all over the highway but are especially bad between Chillicothe and Brookfield. These would either need to be demolished, or (the more likely option) 36 needs to have its original road destroyed and repaved.
(2) The aforementioned "roller-coaster" highways. When 36 was being constructed to 4-lane divided standards, the original route just had extra lanes added to make it divided. This means the original, non-interstate-standard road still exists in some parts. These would have to be rebuilt.
(3) About 4 miles of 36 between Macon and Clarence need outer shoulder expansion on the westbound side. The shoulder is not wide enough to be at interstate standards.
(4) 36 between Clarence and Monroe City parallels a railroad, which could make construction of required interchanges nearly impossible (assuming MoDOT is unwilling to repave 36 to make room for new interchanges).
Pros of Extending 72 to Cameron:- Would relieve traffic off of Interstate 70 between Kansas City and Saint Louis. Seriously, this route is usually very busy, and I think that merely signing 36 as Interstate 72 would bring a surprising amount of new traffic to the road.
- As cited by the city of Hannibal, 72 being extended would bring tourism and economic benefits to all major cities on the route (Cameron, Hamilton, Chillicothe, Brookfield, Macon, Shelbina, Monroe City, and obviously, Hannibal).
- The intersections on the route would be destroyed, preventing (or at least decreasing) the number of potential accidents that may occur as a result of 36 being at 65MPH.
- Speaking of speed limits, 36 would see an increase from 65 to 70MPH.
- Potential recognition of the Chicago-Kansas City Expressway, a route that, from what I have seen, goes largely unrecognized (with the exception of road geeks that of course know about it).
Cons of Extending 72 to Cameron:- This would be a somewhat costly project. Missouri doesn't seem to be able to provide much of a Transportation budget (our roads SUCK
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- This would take a lot of land from farmers, who likely won't be happy about not only their loss of land, but loss of direct access to a route that runs directly in front of their house.
- Most people would see this to be useless and a waste of money, considering Missouri has far more important matters to deal with.
I think if Missouri does extend Interstate 72 at some point, it will be slowly, and probably in parts. 72 would probably firstly see expansion to the US 24 exit south of Palmyra. From there, it would likely be slowly expanded toward Shelbina and Macon. From here, it would slowly be expanded west to Cameron over time. As much as myself and (most of) you all would like to see this route, the sad truth is that it is highly unlikely that MoDOT expands it anytime soon. It would take a huge event (such as I-70 being tolled) for them to expand. Although, if they do expand 72, it would be really nice to finally have a direct route from Kansas City to western Illinois.
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Topic: Future of I-72 in Missouri? (Read 64703 times)