MoDOT chief apologizes for road conditions

Friday, January 13, 2012

ST. LOUIS (AP) — The director of the Missouri Department of Transportation has apologized for the mess in the St. Louis area caused by the relatively light snowfall this week.

St. Louis-area highways were gridlocked for hours after snow began falling just before Thursday’s morning rush hour. The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported nearly 300 calls about accidents and vehicles sliding off roadways. Interstate Highway 64 was so slick in spots that cars and trucks spun their tires and couldn’t move. Some commutes took more than three hours.

MoDOT chief Kevin Keith told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (http://bit.ly/zAmzU2) that he was unhappy about the effort to clear roadways.

“We didn’t do a very good job, and my reaction to that is, I’m disappointed,” Keith said. “I want to apologize to the people of St. Louis and those in that part Missouri for our efforts. You should expect more from us, and you’ll get it.”

MoDOT decided not to pretreat interstates with a salt brine solution, even though 2 to 3 inches of snow was in the forecast the previous night. Instead, crews filled trucks with rock salt and began spreading it when the snow began. They then planned to make a second trip and spread chemicals.

But by that time, it was too late and many roadways were frozen over.

“Traffic hit at the time we needed to be out there for the next round,” St. Louis District Engineer Ed Hassinger said. “We just couldn’t get there.”

Keith said there was no excuse because MoDOT had ample manpower and equipment. He said he has already spoken with St. Louis-area officials about how to prevent similar problems in the future.

“We still have an expectation that when it snows, we’re ready,” Keith said. “I wasn’t very happy about it. I’ve expressed my displeasure and expect it won’t happen again.”

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Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, http://www.stltoday.com

More like this story

redenamel 1 year, 4 months ago

deja vu ..... please see the redenamel blog in the News Tribune for the prediction of this

dinger 1 year, 4 months ago

You noticed he apologized to St. Louis, where the votes and money are, when they make a mistake but did we hear an apology when there were hundreds of wrecks here in Mid Missouri during the December snow? Guess were not important enough here as all we got is opps we were surprised.

MissouriTenth 1 year, 4 months ago

They ought to be apologizing for the mess that MoDot's budget is leaving Missouri roadways period. Where's Missouri tax dollars going? More importantly, where's our Federal tax dollars going for the Interstate system that runs through our State? Cut the spending on trillion dollar overseas military operations, and Federal nanny-state programs!

herewego 1 year, 4 months ago

What would you expect from a "business" that sells off half of its equipment and downsizes its workforce? This was predicted, just as sure as more snow will fall this winter season. Just wondering who they will apologize to next.... Where's the MONEY going, if it isn't for roads?

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