ST. LOUIS — Slowing drivers down is the focus for city leaders as they try to keep people safe in south St. Louis.
Over 100 residents weighed in on the new potential changes during a public meeting Monday night.
Ward 1 Alderwoman Anne Schweitzer and Ward 2 Alderman Tom Oldenburg have been conducting the traffic study for the past seven months along River Des Peres from Gravois to Interstate 55.
The major problems they have found include speeding, poor roadway conditions and traffic crashes.
The city said one person has lost their life on the stretch in the last five years.
"They're putting people's lives in danger. It's terrible," said Bevo Mill resident Mary Jane Wash.
Wash said she's used to seeing people speed 30 mph above the posted speed limit.
"People just go flying down there. They have no respect for the traffic laws or anything. They are running stop signs and stop lights. They go right through them. I was coming down Morgan Ford Road this morning and was stopped at a red light. There was a car in front of me. They went right through it," Wash said.
Ann Reber lives on Carondelet Road and experiences the danger daily.
"The speeding is so ridiculous. You don't know how fast they're coming. It's awful. You can't pull out of your driveway. If you do, you're taking a chance of getting hit or rear-ended. You're afraid somebody's going to hit you while you're mowing your lawn at the edge of the road," Reber said.
At the time of the study, more than 66% of all drivers they tracked exceeded the speed limit. Another alarming statistic revealed that 80% of traffic crashes along River Des Peres happen on Gravois Road and Morgan Ford Road.
"Some of them end up in River Des Peres," Wash said.
City leaders hope to slow down drivers in a variety of ways, including raising medians and curb extensions, adding new sidewalks and stoplights, pavement resurfacing, and possibly adding a center turn lane.
"I hope they do something. I don't know what they can do, but anything would help—anything," Wash said.
The traffic study will be completed in November, and construction is set to start in 2028.
The public meeting is on Monday, Sept. 16 from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Carondelet Park Rec Plex along Holly Hills Road.
You can find more details on the study here.