Community Forums

Pacman22 · 07-17-2018, 10:12 PM

We have to make a trip from West TN to Aberdeen,SD to help a family member. I was hoping someone could advise me on road conditions or construction. The route we are planning on taking is 55 to St. Louis, then 70 to Kansas City, then 29 to 12 to Aberdeen. We will be traveling in a 2012 Thor Daybreak 34SS gasser w/Ford V10 engine.

I checked on line and it looks like there is construction along 29 through Iowa. I called the Iowa highway dept and the info sounded like there is no work being done on weekends. I was hoping someone would be able to advise on this and possibly recommend a different route, if the one we have worked out isn’t the best option.

Thank you in advance for your help.

BFlinn181 · 07-19-2018, 02:32 PM

In my experience, most interstate construction might reduce to one lane, and around large cities can cause delays. However, often the slow traffic is still less time than trying to find alternate routes. Just take a deep breath and don't get worked up over any delays. It beats walking!

I'm sure you've bookmarked each state's DOT website and the others that show realtime highway conditions on the routes your using. I use map apps on my iPhone to keep informed on traffic conditions.

Along I-55, if you find I-270 around St. Louis is congested, you might get off I-55 and take MO 141, a divided 4-lane road that is just a bit further west of I-270 and does meet up with I-70.

At Kansas City, If I-70/I-29 is congested, I-435 takes you around the city and meets up with I-29 N. I-29 is paralleled by IA 371 from Platte City to St Joseph and then I-229 joins I-29 north of St. Joseph.

I can't promise any of these routes will save time, but if you encounter truly horrific back-ups, there are alternatives. I often jot down alternatives so if I hear of large delays, I have alternatives on a notepad. This has saved me time when I've encountered problems in traveling.

Pacman22 · 07-19-2018, 06:09 PM

Thank for the information. I have added the web sites to favorites.
We started the trip today and I55 just south of the Missouri state line is really ROUGH. Both lanes are bad but the left lane is a little better.

High Octane · 07-20-2018, 06:32 AM

I29 from Sioux Falls North should be good. Some single lane 65 mph the rest is wide open 80mph. No real bad construction. I’ll be taking a trip to Sioux Falls later today to pick up my 1st rv, so I’ll know more by late afternoon if that helps.

CharlesinGA · 07-21-2018, 09:08 PM

I realize the OP is probably at their destination by now, but for others, I don't even try to go thru St Louis. I cross southern Illinois either by getting off of I-24 at Vienna and going west on 146 till it hits state 3 and then south to Cape Girardeau to cross the big muddy, or I take state 3 north to Chester to cross over. A variation of this is to go as far north as Marion on I-57 then west on state 13 (there is a wonderful Federal Wildlife Refuge campground just off the highway at Crab Orchard Lake) and go west to state 3 then north to Chester.

Another fun way to cross the river, and I have done this in a car, not the motorhome, is to take the ferry at Sainte Genevieve. I enjoyed the ride across but discovered a bridge was out across the Kaskaskia River and spend an extra 30 minutes going around. The bridge has since been reopened, following a major rebuild.

I have never encountered any issues taking 270 around the west side of SL to get to I-70. At Kansas City I always take I-435 around.

I-29 is a wonderful road. Last year I spent two hours northbound in the late afternoon between St Joe and Council Bluffs with the cruise set on about 63. Never once had to disengage it, the sound of that Sprinter diesel darn near put me to sleep. One of the best sections of interstate I have ever seen.

Charles

Pacman22 · 07-21-2018, 11:48 PM

We made it to Aberdeen with no issues. There is a little construction on I-70, but nothing major. The worst part was on the way back home; south bound I-29 through Sioux City. North bound was not too bad in the same location.
Thanks to everyone for all the info and advice.

Busskipper · 07-23-2018, 05:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pacman22

We have to make a trip from West TN to Aberdeen,SD to help a family member. I was hoping someone could advise me on road conditions or construction. The route we are planning on taking is 55 to St. Louis, then 70 to Kansas City, then 29 to 12 to Aberdeen. We will be traveling in a 2012 Thor Daybreak 34SS gasser w/Ford V10 engine.

I checked on line and it looks like there is construction along 29 through Iowa. I called the Iowa highway dept and the info sounded like there is no work being done on weekends. I was hoping someone would be able to advise on this and possibly recommend a different route, if the one we have worked out isn’t the best option.

Thank you in advance for your help.

Sounds like you have a Plan - If I were you I'd swap Hannibal for St Louis and take RT 36 across Kansas - Less Traffic- fewer trucks - Good Road - avoids two major PITA Cities -

-

Something like this - Map - https://binged.it/2mAtoyD

Best of Luck,

Edit - see I was late to the party - for Future trips - look at RT 36 we love it vs I-70.