Interstate 72 - Future

Future

Based on the 157-mile (253 km) marker at Missouri 79, when US 36 is upgraded to Interstate standards across Missouri, the future western terminus of I-72 would be at Cameron, Missouri at the intersection with I-35.

The concept of I-72 across Missouri was to create the Chicago – Kansas City Expressway, a rural 4-lane highway across northern Missouri and west central Illinois from Cameron, Missouri at I-35 to Springfield, Illinois at I-55. This would provide a series of rural 4-lane highways (I-35, US 36, I-72, and I-55) connecting Chicago to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Corridor (High Priority Corridor 23). This would reduce the amount of through traffic, primarily truck traffic, in the St. Louis, Des Moines, and Quad Cities metropolitan areas by serving as an alternate route for I-70 and I-80.

The Missouri portion of this route is designated as part of High Priority Corridor 61.

Due to funding priorities, it was initially determined that upgrading US 36 between Macon and Hannibal was a low-priority project and was officially tabled by MoDOT. MoDOT committed to building the four-lane highway as a non-interstate expressway only if the five counties served by US 36 east of Macon would contribute half of the $100 million cost. The upgrade to 4-lane expressway on US 36 has been completed in the fall of 2010 and the route has been marked with CKC signs from Hannibal, MO to Cameron, MO.