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Construction at Forest Park Pkwy. and Kingshighway Blvd.

Construction will affect traffic for up to a year

June 17, 2016

Update (8/29/17): According to a St. Louis Post-Dispatch article, Forest Park Parkway west of Kingshighway is expected to reopen Friday, Sept. 1, 2017.

Update (11/29/16): Kingshighway/Forest Park intersection work is now scheduled to begin December 5. Read more about the project »

Update (10/3/16): Construction at the intersection of Forest Park Parkway and Kingshighway Boulevard, originally scheduled for late summer, has been delayed. The project is tentatively scheduled to begin in early November. We will post updates here when available.

A project to create a traditional intersection at Forest Park Parkway and Kingshighway Boulevard is expected to begin in July or August 2016.

As a result:

  • Forest Park Parkway west of Kingshighway through Union Avenue will close to through traffic for up to a year. Local traffic west of the construction will be allowed. Detours will be marked.
  • East of Kingshighway, east/west lanes on Forest Park Avenue between Kingshighway and Euclid Avenue will be limited to one lane in each direction.
  • North-south lanes on Kingshighway will have some limited overnight closures but will remain open during the day. The existing Kingshighway bridge over Forest Park Parkway will be left in place and filled underneath.

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.

Pedestrian safety also is a key concern at Kingshighway and at Euclid. The intersection at Euclid is especially dangerous with faster eastbound traffic emerging from beneath Kingshighway and mixing with slower eastbound vehicles.

In August 2017, the Barnes-Jewish Hospital north expansion will open, substantially increasing the volume of patient care on the north end of the campus. The new intersection is aimed at improving access to the medical center and the Central West End.

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 of St. Louis.

These projects, estimated at $10 million, will be funded with a $2.5 million federal grant (for the MetroLink bridge portion), $5 million from BJC HealthCare and $2.5 million from Washington University School of Medicine. Their completion is expected in July or August 2017.