Multi-million dollar project aims to ease congestion in Capital City

A multi-million dollar project may be soon underway in Jefferson City.

It’s a project that promises a fix for traffic along Highway 54.

If you have ever been through the morning or afternoon rush at Stadium and 54, you know how busy and congested that area can get.

Cole County Presiding Commissioner Marc Ellinger said, “With the existing traffic flow, we have a significant problem, particularly in the morning. Traffic backs up onto the highway which means, right coming around a bend on a 60 mile per hour highway, traffic stops.”

Cole County Commissioners are working alongside the Jefferson City Public Works Department, in order to help solve the traffic problem all around the area of Stadium and 54.

City Engineer David Bange said, “The traffic study is looking out into 2035 as their projection in terms of the traffic numbers, so we’re projecting a half percent traffic growth each year.”

On the west side of 54, project designers hope to widen the Stadium exit ramp and make the intersection of Stadium and Jefferson a roundabout, totaling about $2.1 million.

On the east side by the hospital, it will cost another $1.8 million to put in either a light or roundabout at Monroe and Christy.

“With Capital Region working on their expansion there as well, we are looking at better access for them, so it’s kind of a combined project,” said Bange.

All of that with the goal in mind to help ease traffic.

“Most of what we were focusing on today was the east side which is Christy and Monroe Street, and whether we put in signals there, add a signal at Monroe, or we put in
a roundabout or realign and that’s the reason why we are having a follow up meeting with traffic engineers to discuss it,” said Ellinger.

Project managers said the project might take several years to complete, but they said in the long run fixing the traffic problem at that intersection will be worth it.