By KERRY SMITH, EDITOR, ST. LOUIS CONSTRUCTION NEWS AND REVIEW MAGAZINE
Passage of the $40 million St. Louis Safer Streets bill in March is beginning to manifest street improvement plans across the city, including several in Downtown West.
Signed into law on March 1, the bill allocates millions toward improving major corridors to slow down speeding motorists and deter fatal collisions.
Brickline Greenway – the portion along Market Street from 20th Street to the Gateway Arch – is one of these designated projects. Part of this project was completed as part of the CITYPARK | St. Louis CITY SC stadium development. Extra-wide pedestrian and bike lanes are a major focus of this project’s design.
The Jefferson Avenue and 20th Street mobility improvements project is another facet of the Safer Streets funding. In collaboration with Great Rivers Greenway and Project Connect, this federally funded project rebuilds 1.6 miles of 20th Street stretching from Market Street to St. Louis Avenue. It connects Downtown West with St. Louis Place Park and the NGA campus. Construction is anticipated to begin next year. This project also includes construction of a 10-foot-wide cycle track along 20th Street’s west side, a 21-foot road width and parking on the east edge of 20th Street with curb extensions and street tree additions along the entire stretch of 20th Street.
Trailnet’s Bike-Walk-Bus Project on Tucker Boulevard is also a federally funded project set to begin in 2024 that is part of the agency’s Connecting St. Louis plan. It includes .9 miles of Tucker from Chouteau Avenue north across the 12th Street bridge to Washington Avenue. The work will feature protected cycle track along Tucker’s western edge and a parking lane with curb extensions to reduce Tucker’s southbound traffic to three lanes.