Chamber News

GBA Receives 2009 Engineering Excellence Award from ACEC Missouri - Firm Recognized for Improvements to I-70 / Route 94 Interchange

Lenexa, Kan. (Feb. 18, 2009) – Improvements to the interchange of Interstate 70 and Route 94 in St. Charles, Mo., have earned a 2009 Engineering Excellence Award for GBA, a leading engineering and architectural firm with headquarters here and offices in O’Fallon, St. Louis, and Kansas City in Missouri.  The award was presented to GBA by the American Council of Engineering Companies of Missouri (ACEC MO).

The three-phase, $33 million project, which was dedicated in April of 2008, is providing motorists with a safer, faster, and more efficient route. It replaces an interchange and outer road system originally built in 1956 which, although modified over the years, no longer had the capacity to accommodate increased traffic. According to an editorial that appeared in the St. Charles Journal, “The changes have done exactly what engineers intended – create a smoother flow of traffic and a safer path for motorists.”

The Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) selected GBA to design the improvements, including preparation of preliminary plans, traffic and alignment studies, bridge analyses, environmental considerations, cost estimates, and final design. “The I-70/Route 94 interchange improvement project has truly made a difference in a highly congested area,” said Project Manager Barry Bergman, P.E., of MoDOT.

GBA teamed with MoDOT to provide innovative and quality solutions throughout each phase of the project. The firm developed a CORSIM traffic computer model that was used in conjunction with traditional capacity analysis to evaluate the corridor and analyze improvement alternatives. The project also involved design of a single-point urban interchange (SPUI), creating a unique outer road system that also incorporates a roundabout to enhance traffic flow, and a complex construction sequencing plan to keep traffic moving and provide access to local businesses throughout construction. GBA also partnered with MoDOT to address community needs and concerns, participating in public information meetings and presentations to neighborhood and service organizations.

The high-profile project was supported by Missouri state legislators, members of Congress, the City of St. Charles, St. Charles County, the St. Charles Chamber of Commerce, and the East-West Gateway Council of Governments, all of whom helped obtain funding for the project.

GBA, which was founded in 1969, is a full-service engineering and architectural firm with a staff of 230 located in headquarters in Lenexa and in offices in St. Louis, O’Fallon, and Kansas City in Missouri, and in Lisle, Ill.