ST. CLAIR COUNTY, Ill. — Two months after our I-Team reported on construction causing huge travel headaches in St. Clair County, we went back for progress. From missing supplies to safety concerns, drivers tell us it’s led to traffic concerns for more than a year.
“It's an inconvenience," local driver Lindsey Cauley said.
The I-Team has been talking with frustrated drivers for months about this stretch of road: Frank Scott Parkway in St. Clair County, Illinois. A two-mile stretch that about 16,000 drivers use daily is being widened from two lanes to five. In July, drivers said the project had lasted more than a year but they rarely saw crews working.
“It's just all blocked off," driver Matt Howard told us in July.
“What are we waiting on?” said Chris Hislope, another local resident.
“Why can't we get through?” Caroline Gore said.
We had those questions, too. So, we went to the county’s engineer. He told us a 14-hundred-foot section of road was missing reinforcements to make the pavement stronger, so the contractor had to remove it to reinforce and replace the pavement.
We went back to the people in charge.
“We appreciate your patience so far," said Norm Etling, an engineer with St. Clair County. “The striping is proceeding. We started striping during the day, and we received several concerns that striping during the day was causing some confusion. So this evening, we're going to try to do some striping at night."
He said the contractor is months ahead of schedule, which means not as much urgency to get the job done right now.
“But I get it. There's nobody out there. Every day that we're so far ahead of schedule, it's really hard to push," he said.
For drivers, their patience is being tested.
“If that's the case, I just wonder why they don't, you know, be more proactive with getting it finished quicker," Cauley said.
The county engineer said he’s hopeful the project will be finished by the end of September.
He thanked everyone for their comments, concerns and patience. He also suggested anyone with concerns or comments to call his office at 618-233-1392, extension 20.
If you’ve got a tip for our I-Team, use the form below, leave a voice message at 314-444-5231 or email our I-Team directly at tips@ksdk.com.
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