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Gas prices on the rise

June 4, 2009 By

We say it every summer — "well, gas prices are going up for the summer travel season."

And they are on the rise, but it’s not all due to summer demand, which drives prices up, up, up.

Mike Right with AAA in St. Louis says the spike is also a result of an unexpected rise in crude oil prices. Still, motorists won’t feel the pinch at the pump as bad as last year.

The average gas price in Missouriis about $2.47 a gallon and rising. Right says the Department of Energyhad projected a peak of $2.30 a gallon, but that "their projections are wrong as they usually are" and that a more likely peak is about $2.70.

Last year’s peak, in July, was around $3.95 a gallon. Ouch. He says there is no indication that we’ll reach those kind of prices this year. He says AAA’s preliminary indications is that more motorists will be traveling this year, and farther distances, that people aren’t as fearful of the economic decline as last year and are taking that vacation.

Right says to get the most out ofyour gas tank, keep tires inflated, air filters changed, don’t carry extraweight and slow down. Dropping your speed on the highways by just 10 mph can cut back on gas consumption.

He also recommends being wary of e-mail myths or Internet "tips" that don’t really help save on gas. The best advice, he says, is to follow your car’s instruction manual on octane usage.

And Missourians are doing better than most, Right says. A look at national averages show Missouri in the top half with SouthCarolina having the cheapest gas at $2.37. Hawaii is at the bottom of the list; motorists there are paying about $2.91.

The AAA Web site offers a host of information on gas prices, calculating fuel expenses before hitting the road and more.

 

Filed Under: Economy, Transportation Tagged With: ,

Highway Patrol reminds motorists to be safe on congested roads this weekend

May 22, 2009 By

As Memorial Day kicks off the summer travel season, the Highway Patrol issues some safety reminders and sobering statistics.

Crash in Southwest Missouri Lieutenent John Hotz says troopers will be out in numbers this weekend in anticipation of heavy traffic statewide, both to enforce traffic laws and to assist motorists who might be having trouble on the roadside.

The Highway Patrol says inattention, speeding and failing to yield the right-of-way cause the majority of accidents. Last year, there were more than 1,000 crashes resulting in 11 deaths and 477 injuries.

The Highway Patrol reminds motorists to obey the sepeed limit, pay attention to extra traffic on the roadways, watch for construction zones, follow traffic laws, fasten seatbelts, and make sure kids are in a safety seat appropriate to the size of the child.

The patrol reports Missouri is currently experiencing an 18 percent reduction in traffic deaths compared to the same time period last year, but says there are many vacation days between now and the end of the year.

The patrol will be participating in Operation C.A.R.E. (Combined Accident Reduction Effort) during the long holiday weekend. This means every available officer will be on the road enforcing traffic laws and assisting motorists. In addition, the Patrol will assign troopers to 10-mile intervals along Interstates 29, 44, 55, and 70, and U.S. Highways 60 and 61 on May 22 and May 25.

Troopers taking part in this enforcement project will be alert for all traffic offenses, and be especially vigilant to aggressive driving violations.

Motorists in need of assistance or who want to report a crime should use the Highway Patrol’s Highway Emergency number (800) 525-5555 or dial *55 on a cellular phone. For road condition reports, travelers can call (800) 222-6400 to hear about road construction areas throughout the state.

Troopers will focus their attention on seat belt use, use of child safety seats, intoxicated drivers, and speeding.

Missouri is currently experiencing an 18 percent reduction in traffic deaths compared to the same time period last year, but, the patrol says there are several holiday periods and many vacation days between now and the end of the year. Motorists are encouraged to practice safe driving habits to help continue this trend.

Jessica Machetta reports [Download/listen MP3]

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Tagged With: , , ,

MoDOT urges Nixon to veto repeal of motorcycle helmet law

May 20, 2009 By

The Missouri Department of Transportation is urging Gov. Jay Nixon to veto Senate Bill 202, which would repeal Missouri’s motorcycle helmet law.

Director Pete Rahn “Nine to one. That’s the ratio by which Missourians support the state law requiring motorcyclists to wear helmets according to a new telephone survey,” says MoDOT Director Pete Rahn. “The survey revealed 84 percent of Missourians support the state’s current law requiring motorcyclists to wear helmets. Only nine percent opposed the helmet requirement. At the same time, 75 percent of those who have ridden a motorcycle in the past year support the law requiring helmet use.”

All motorcycle riders and passengers are currently required by law to wear helmets. The Missouri General Assembly recently amended Missouri’s all-rider motorcycle helmet law, which has been sent to the governor for his consideration. The current law has been in effect for more than 40 years.

MoDOT reports that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that 42 additional lives were saved in Missouri in 2007 because of motorcycle helmet use.

“By a nine to one ratio, Missourians know this simple fact: motorcycle helmets save lives,” MoDOT Director Pete Rahn said. “I urge Gov. Nixon to veto Senate Bill 202 and save precious lives.”

Rahn says changing the motorcycle helmet law couldn’t come at a worse time – motorcycle crash deaths in Missouri are on the rise. In 2008, there was a 13 percent increase in motorcycle fatalities from 93 in 2007 to 107. In fact, even though traffic fatalities as a whole are down significantly in Missouri, motorcycle fatalities have nearly doubled since 2004.

“Repeal of the helmet law will cause even more senseless loss of lives. A recent National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Study of 10 states found that when the helmet laws were repealed, helmet-use rates dropped from 99 percent to 50 percent and motorcycle fatalities increased significantly,” Rahn says.

He was joined today at the Capitol Region Medical Center Emergency Room Entrance by opponents of the legislation: Dr. Jeffrey Coughenour, assistant professor of surgery with the University of Missouri Health Care; Dr. Greg Folkert with Washinton University School of Medicine, who lost his father at age 10 because of a motorcycle crash in which he was not wearing a helmet; and David Humphrey, a Fulton resident, who survived a serious crash while riding a motorcycle on Highway 54 a few years back. Humphrey says a helmet saved his life.

 


Pete Rahn talks about possible repeal of helmet law

Filed Under: Politics & Government Tagged With: , , , ,

Missouri weather dangerously cold tonight

January 14, 2009 By

Steve Beusterien, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Kansas City, says weather conditions are rapidly deteriorating across the state as a cold front moves in.

"The cold front has moved through much of northern and central Missouri and temperatures have already fallen into the single digits and teens north of Interstate 70, and temperatures are right now 5 to 10 along the Iowa border and 15 to 20 near Interstate 70 and a little warmer to the south," Beusterien says. "Cold air will continue to rush into Missouri this afternoon with strong northwest winds at 15 to 25 miles per hour. The wind chill has already fallen to about 15 below at the Iowa border."

Temperatures are expected to fall to about 5 degrees to 10 degrees below zero across Missouri tonight, Beusterien says, with wind chills falling to about 25 below.

"Naturally … you’ll need to bundle up, reduce your exposure to outdoors," he says, "and if you’re traveling, make sure you have your winter safety kit with you … a little bit of food, extra blankets, flashlights."

"If you get out there and get stranded you’ll get cold quite quickly," he says.

In the case that residents do get stranded on the road, or find themselves without heat in their homes tonight, it’s recommended they call their local emergency personnel or law enforcement agency for help, he says.

Though the weather outside is frightful, Beusterien says there are warmer days in the near forecast and by early next week, the state will see weather that’s "quite nice for this time of year."

Filed Under: Weather Tagged With: ,

Missouri ready to go with projects should Congress act

December 6, 2008 By

Missouri’s transportation director says the federal government needs to make more of an investment in the nation’s infrastructure.

MoDOT Director Pete Rahn has told state lawmakers their federal counter-points need to invest more in transportation, stating the $286 billion budgeted would have to grow to $545 billion to match the purchasing power of the federal transportation program in 1991. He says the federal government allocated five percent of its budget in the 80s to infrastructure and that percentage has steadily decreased ever since.

Some in Congress have advocated an emergency $25 billion economic stimulus package that would focus on infrastructure, in particular, roads and bridges. MoDOT officials have outlined 34 projects it would be ready to begin within 180 days should Congress release the money. The majority of the money, $137 million, would make improvements to Interstates 70, 44, 55, 35 and 29. Another $60 million would be set aside for rural routes throughout the state. Seventeen of the proposed projects are already included in the state construction program. They would be completed sooner, some by up to four years earlier.

Rahn says traffic has grown so much over the years that it uses up 83% of the national highway system’s capacity. Even with the injection of stimulus money, federal funding would fall far short of what Washington should deliver in Rahn’s eyes. He says the nation needs to engage in a conversation on the appropriate amount it should spend on infrastructure when the current highway bill ends in September of next year. He says MoDOT also is engaging in a conversation with Missourians about how the state should proceed with funding transportation once money leveraged from passage of Amendment Three runs out, which he says is coming shortly, reducing the state highway budget to mere maintenance.

Download/listen Brent Martin reports (:60 MP3)

Filed Under: Transportation Tagged With: ,
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