A project to create a traditional intersection at Forest Park Parkway and Kingshighway has gained the approvals needed to proceed. Work is expected to begin in July or August, 2016. The current configuration, with Forest Park Parkway running under Kingshighway, presents challenges for drivers accessing the medical center, the Central West End and Forest Park. Eastbound Forest Park Parkway drivers cannot turn onto northbound Kingshighway. Drivers on Kingshighway cannot access westbound Forest Park Parkway from either direction.

“The configuration of Kingshighway and Forest Park Parkway does not lend itself to easy and safe navigation for patients and families seeking to access this part of the campus,” says June Fowler, BJC communications and marketing senior vice president. “This much-improved intersection is an integral component in the renewal of the medical campus and will provide a new front door to the Central West End and medical center from the west.”

Safety near the Euclid intersection is a concern that should see relief when the new intersection is completed. Today, faster eastbound traffic emerging from beneath Kingshighway mixes with slower eastbound vehicles. The volume of pedestrians crossing Forest Park Parkway adds to the already tenuous situation.

A related project a few hundred feet west of Kingshighway will reconstruct the Forest Park Parkway bridge over the MetroLink tracks. That construction will be overseen by the city.

The $10 million project is funded with a $2.5 million federal grant (for the MetroLink bridge portion), $5 million from BJC and $2.5 million from Washington University School of Medicine.

The benefits
In August 2017, the Barnes-Jewish north expansion will open, substantially increasing the volume of patient care on the north end of the campus. The new intersection will help to reduce confusion, improving access to the medical center as well as the Central West End neighborhood. Additional benefits include:

·         Improved pedestrian experience

·         Improved safety at the Forest Park Parkway/Euclid Avenue intersection

·         Improved access to Forest Park with turn lanes from Kingshighway to Forest Park Parkway

·         More visually appealing streetscape

·         Slowing of east/west traffic benefiting pedestrian safety

·         Reduced crisscrossing of vehicles on Forest Park Parkway near Euclid
Timeline and impact
Work is expected to begin in July or August, with Forest Park Parkway west of Kingshighway closing to through traffic for up to a year. Local traffic west of the construction will be maintained. Detours will be marked. Contractors will keep Kingshighway open in both directions. The existing Kingshighway bridge over Forest Park Parkway will be left in place and filled underneath.

·         Work will be completed during overnight hours, 7 p.m.–5 a.m.

·         North-south lanes on Kingshighway will remain open during the day

·         Limited north/south Kingshighway lane closures will occur during overnight hours

·         East/west lanes on Forest Park Parkway between Kingshighway Boulevard and Euclid Avenue will be limited to one lane in each direction

The interchange project is expected to be completed July 1, 2017.

For more information, please view the Q&A. A photo of the new intersection is below.