Counties Impacted
Butler
Route Impacted
Business 60
Work Type
Road Diet
Planning Phase

Project Summary

In an effort to improve safety, the Missouri Department of Transportation will move forward with providing a dedicated center left turn lane on Business 60/Pine Street east of the Black River in Poplar Bluff, Missouri.

This section of roadway is currently seeing higher-than-average rear-end collisions. In addition to reducing rear-end collisions, the updated striping plan will provide wider driving lanes, which will create an easier, more comfortable drive for motorists. 

Project News

Business 60 in Poplar Bluff to Gain Dedicated Turn Lane

In an effort to improve safety, the Missouri Department of Transportation will move forward with providing a dedicated center left turn lane on Business 60/Pine Street east of the Black River in Poplar Bluff, Missouri.

“When we first started the conversation about this project, questions and concerns were raised by Poplar Bluff citizens and community leaders,” said MoDOT Project Manager Curt Woolsey. “In response, MoDOT went back to the drawing board.”

Woolsey explained the project limits have been adjusted and will now extend from the east end of the Black River bridge to North Riverview Drive.

 “The updated plan mitigates the concerns we heard early on,” said MoDOT District Engineer Mark Croarkin. “Ultimately, we feel this project offers too many safety benefits to simply abandon the idea. This is a good balance of listening to the local community and implementing a plan to reduce the higher-than-average rear-end collisions we are currently seeing along this section of roadway.”

In addition to reducing rear-end collisions, the updated striping plan will provide wider driving lanes, which will create an easier, more comfortable drive for motorists. Currently, the driving lanes are 10-feet wide. With the updated striping plan, the driving lanes will be 12-feet wide with a 14-foot-wide center turn lane.

The new configuration east of the Black River will include updating this section of undivided 4-lane roadway to a 3-lane with one eastbound lane, a center turn lane and one westbound lane.

This safety project will be completed in conjunction with the resurfacing project, which will occur from Route W to Route B. The resurfacing project is anticipated to be let in April 2025, with completion of the project anticipated in fall 2026.

Following resurfacing, the roadway will be restriped with the section west of the Black River remaining the same and the section to the east being striped to provide a center turn turn lane.

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Proposed Roadway Reconfiguration in Poplar Bluff

Project Limits

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East of Black River in Poplar Bluff
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Limits for Striping Reconfiguration in Poplar Bluff

For More Information

Contact Photo
Curt Woolsey
Curt Woolsey
Title
Project Manager
Department
Southeast District
Contact Info

(417) 469-6232