MoDOT uses YouTube to show plan for truck-only I-70 lanes
By Elisa Crouch
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
Sunday, Apr. 27 2008

The Missouri Department of Transportation is using YouTube to deliver a message
about how truck-only lanes would work.

The 9-minute, 37-second clip on the popular video-sharing site shows how
Interstate 70 would function if truck-only lanes became a reality.

The stretch between St. Louis and Kansas City is one of the busiest truck
routes in the nation. The video shows two lanes of traffic each way for cars,
and two lanes each way for big rigs — a concept the state is looking into.

The department posted the video this week and plans to use the site regularly
to explain plans and ideas new to Missouri drivers.

"We're broadening the way we're trying to communicate to the public," said
Sally Oxenhandler, spokeswoman for the department. "Sometimes things are hard
to visualize when you hear about them. It's easier to see it on video."

Universities and some public agencies have turned to YouTube to expand their
reach. And the site is a must for political candidates. Gov. Matt Blunt used
the medium to announce he wouldn't run for governor.

MoDOT posted video this spring to its YouTube channel showing demolition of a
bridge in Hermann, aerial footage of Highway 40 construction, and how passing
lanes will work on Highway 5 near Lake of the Ozarks.

"One of the great ways we'll be able to use YouTube is to show people what
projects will look like," said Shane Peck, the department's community relations
director. "As we get more advanced in our ability to do these things, we can
show simulation."

The transportation department began early this year studying whether dedicated
truck lanes should be included in its plan to rebuild 200 miles of I-70 between
Independence and Lake Saint Louis. The video was produced by engineering firm
HNTB for open houses held across the state.

Trucking industry representatives say they like the idea of truck-only lanes as
long as truck drivers aren't required to pay tolls.

"A lot of the accidents with trucks are caused by the interaction between cars
and trucks," said Don Schaefer, executive vice president of Mid-West Truckers
Association Inc., in Springfield, Ill. "From the safety standpoint, a
truck-only lane makes a lot of sense."

Large trucks make up about 30 percent of the traffic on I-70 through Missouri,
according to the department. That amounts to about 10,000 trucks rumbling down
the interstate a day. The department estimates the number of rigs on I-70 will
double by 2030.

The original plan for rebuilding I-70 involves adding a lane or two in each
direction at an estimated cost of $3 billion to $3.5 billion. Truck-only lanes
could increase that cost by 10 percent or 12 percent, said Bob Brendel,
department spokesman. Transportation officials expect to have a better cost
estimate later this year.

Currently, no money is available for the project.

ecrouch@post-dispatch.com | 314-340-8119