Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Streetsblog.net

County Gov Bullies Missouri Town Into Abandoning a Safer Main Street

Local residents described Main Street in O'Fallon, Missouri, as "ugly," "outdated," and "old" in a series of meetings earlier this year.

Main Street in O'Fallon, Missouri via Missouri BIke Fed
Main Street in O'Fallon, Missouri. Photo via Missouri Bike Fed
false

Officials responded with a plan to redesign the road to make it safer and more inviting for pedestrians: a road diet. Scores of American cities have used this design treatment to calm traffic and make commercial districts more walkable, preventing injuries and deaths in the process.

Who could have a problem with that? Well, St. Charles County. The county government has decided to intervene, usurping the authority of the local government. Brent Hugh at the Missouri Bicycle and Pedestrian Federation explains:

This is, frankly, one of the most unbelievable scenarios we have seen in many years of advocacy for better communities for walking and bicycling. The city, which is close to the situation and knows its own needs, had gone through a detailed planning process for improving its main street. The process included public meetings, interviews, and many other forms of public outreach to find out what O'Fallon citizens and businesses really want and need from the project.

After all of that, the County -- without doing any similar research or public outreach -- stepped in and, attempting to exercise bald political power, issued a threat: If the city goes through with its citizen-supported plan, the County will withhold $2.5 million in funding from the city.

This is not the first time St. Charles County has used a similar threat to derail a city's work to make its city center more walkable and bikeable. St. Charles County recently pressured the City of St. Charles to remove planned bike lanes from a project.

It is unfortunate that St. Charles County is taking these steps backward at this important time. Because cities around Missouri, around the United States, and around the world are taking dramatic steps to improve their city centers for bicycling and walking.

And this is not just an issue about who is going to prevail in a political tug of war. The reason advocates and community members are so passionate about implementing road diets in the streets that run through the hearts of their communities is that road diets save lives.

Hugh is urging people to share the news widely and contact local leaders with objections.

Elsewhere on the Network today: The Wash Cycle explains D.C.'s bike share expansion plans over the next three years. Twin Cities Sidewalks says despite the media's chorus a traffic death last week in St. Paul could have been prevented. And Seattle Transit Blog explains that the city has money to expand transit, but is having trouble filling vacant positions.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Friday’s Headlines Are Blinded By the Light

The Ringer takes a deep dive into why headlights are so bright now and the community of people trying to tone them down.

December 6, 2024

Walkable This Way: How Fashionista Derek Guy Became One of the Nation’s Best-Known Urbanists

The menswear icon has used his vast social media platform to wade into another culture war by promoting walkable neighborhoods over the alienating lifestyle of suburban sprawl.

December 6, 2024

Talking Headways Podcast: Educating the Next Generation of Transit Riders

King County Metro’s Rachel DeCordoba on educating the next generation of transit riders.

December 5, 2024

How the 17th-Century ‘Mews’ Could Make 21st-Century Suburbs More Walkable

A new development in Texas is repurposing an old idea to make constant driving optional.

December 5, 2024

Thursday’s Headlines … Psych!

Getting people out of their cars requires both viable alternatives and something to jolt them out of their habits, according to behavioral scientists.

December 5, 2024
See all posts