TWO CRASHES, ONE DANGEROUS CORRIDOR: THE SAFETY PROBLEM ON U.S. 61

WENTZVILLE, MO — A fatal crash Saturday and another injury crash Sunday at the same U.S. 61 intersection are putting a fresh spotlight on a highway corridor where high-speed through traffic still meets local roads at grade.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol says a 29-year-old Wentzville woman was killed Saturday afternoon when a Toyota Camry crossing the southbound lanes of U.S. 61 at Dietrich Road entered the path of a southbound Freightliner. The 29-year-old O’Fallon woman driving the Toyota suffered serious injuries, while the truck driver received minor injuries.

Then on Sunday, U.S. 61 at Dietrich Road was the scene of another crossing collision. The Patrol says a 79-year-old Warrenton woman traveling west on Dietrich failed to yield while crossing U.S. 61 and was struck by a southbound Volkswagen Atlas. Both drivers suffered minor injuries. Two crashes at the same crossing on consecutive days underscore the hazards created when local traffic must cross multiple lanes of a high-speed divided highway.

The problem is not confined to St. Charles County. At 4:40 Sunday afternoon, a separate crash occurred on U.S. 61 at Paris Gravel Road in Ralls County. The Patrol says a southbound Volvo truck failed to stop at the traffic signal and struck an eastbound Jeep Compass. The 50-year-old Hannibal woman driving the Jeep suffered moderate injuries and was taken to Hannibal Regional Hospital.

Missouri transportation officials have been studying this problem for years. MoDOT has identified high crash rates on portions of Route 61 associated with high traffic speeds and traffic volume, conditions that make entering, crossing and merging difficult. In Lincoln County, MoDOT says increased truck traffic and overall traffic growth have produced a noticeable increase in crashes, with high-severity right-angle and turning crashes continuing at some at-grade median crossovers.

The state’s response increasingly has been to separate local traffic from Highway 61 rather than ask motorists to cross the expressway at grade. MoDOT’s preferred St. Charles County plan calls for a grade-separated interchange at Highway W and outer roads that would allow the remaining at-grade median crossovers between Dietrich Road and McHugh Road to be closed. The plan is intended to remove four at-grade crossings, including Dietrich Road, and approximately $40 million has been allocated for initial corridor improvements beginning in 2028, subject to the state transportation program.

Similar work is moving north. MoDOT is eliminating at-grade crossings at Routes K and V and Creech Lane in Lincoln County in favor of a full-access interchange, and another planned project near Auburn will eliminate crossings at Routes B and E and Shannon Lane/Wilson Road. Transportation officials specifically cite the goal of reducing the potential for future angle and high-severity crashes.

U.S. 61 is one of northeast Missouri’s most important transportation arteries, carrying commuters, local residents and heavy truck traffic between the St. Louis region, Lincoln County, Bowling Green, Hannibal and points north. But until more of its remaining crossovers are replaced or closed, motorists turning onto or crossing the highway continue to encounter a basic design conflict: low-speed local traffic crossing paths with vehicles traveling at highway speed.

Photo: U.S. 61 at U.S. 54 near Bowling Green, Missouri. Central Avenue/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.