Residents living on Johnson Road, near the Big Hollow Energy Center south of Festus, say Ameren’s plan to widen a sharp curve isn’t enough to curb dangerous accidents.
Ameren is working with the county to make safety improvements on the road leading to the Big Hollow gas-fired plant, allowing heavy-duty trucks to safely access the construction site.
However, some residents living on Johnson Road said widening the road won’t prevent the hundreds of dump trucks that come to and leave the plant daily from speeding.
A joint public meeting between Jefferson County Public Works and Ameren was held Aug. 12 at the Jefferson R-7 Performing Arts Center, where nearby homeowners were given the opportunity to express their opinions and concerns regarding the improvement plans.
Ameren is actively decommissioning the Rush Island Power Plant site and has recently begun construction of the Big Hollow Energy Center electricity generating plant and power storage facility, Public Works Director Jason Jonas said, leading to increased truck traffic on Johnson Road.
Felicia Rodgers, Ameren’s director of generation projects, said the utility company has been working with the county to increase patrols in the area, trying to prevent speeding.
In addition, Ameren has posted signage, urging drivers to slow down, and has also used several escort vehicles that travel at or below the posted speed limit during working hours.
However, Ameren still has concerns with the tight curve on Johnson Road, which sits about a half-mile east of Hwy. 61, and two miles southwest of the Big Hollow Energy Center.
Ameren proposes widening Johnson Road and providing shoulders through the curve, which would allow heavy-duty trucks more room to avoid collisions. Ameren also plans to add rumble strips and additional signage along the road.
Jonas said the project would be completed at no cost to the county.
The Jefferson County Council on Aug. 10 gave a “blanket master ordinance” to County Executive Dennis Gannon, Jonas said, allowing Gannon to enter the county into a future agreement with Ameren, under certain stipulations.
Jonas said no county dollars can be used to pay for the project, and no right-of-way acquisitions will be allowed. The council voted 6-0 in favor of giving Gannon permission to enter into an agreement with Ameren.
Councilman Brian Haskins (District 1, High Ridge) was absent.
“Right now, we haven’t ironed (the agreement) out,” Jonas said. “Now, we’re trying to figure out between Ameren and the county the roles and responsibilities.”
Jonas said the county will draft an agreement within the next few weeks and expects the county will have full control over choosing the contractor and inspecting the project, with Ameren acting as the financier.
He expects the road to be under construction by mid-October and likely completed by Thanksgiving.
Public comments regarding the project will be accepted through Aug. 26. Those interested can email Public Works at pwprojects@jeffcomo.org.
Concerns
Even with Ameren’s safety precautions, the road is still dangerous, said Rich Tindell, who has lived with his wife, Jean, on Johnson Road for 43 years.
Several wrecks have occurred near the tight, hairpin turn that Ameren is looking to widen, including one dump truck that overturned into the opposite lane, he said.
Rich said truck drivers began intimidating and hassling homeowners when they found out people were complaining about the speeding on the road.
“The drivers go up and down the road, running their engine brakes and honking, trying to intimidate everybody,” he said.
“It’s a nightmare,” added Jean. “Not only that, but school is going to be starting soon. After somebody does get killed, I mean, there’s no going back.”
Rich questioned why Ameren couldn’t divert some of the heavy vehicle traffic to other modes of transportation.
The former Rush Island site has both rail and barge access, he said, which could be used to haul materials to and from the site rather than Johnson Road.
Jean said the widening of the hairpin curve will only embolden the truck drivers to act more recklessly.
“The trucks speed; nothing can slow them down,” she said. “(The improvements) will make them go faster.”
Barry Garber, another neighbor on Johnson Road, said he’s concerned with the noise created when large trucks drive over the rumble strips. He also questioned why Ameren is looking to spend so much money on widening the curve, when the demolition of the Rush Island plant and construction of the new facility is only temporary.
Jeff Moore, operations manager at Big Hollow, said the plant is expected to begin operating in the fall of 2028. The heavy construction residents are seeing now will continue through next year, although Ameren officials say the amount of traffic on the road will decrease.
“We really want to make sure that everybody traveling Johnson Road is safe, and we really feel like this is a good safety improvement, even long term,” Moore said. “I know some people have concerns here, and then you know we’ll take these comments and share them with the county and share them with the design team, and you know see if there maybe should be some things that we take into consideration based on the public’s comments.
“Ameren is trying to be a good neighbor. We understand it is a little bit of an inconvenience here with all the stuff going on these days, and we appreciate everybody’s patience as we get through this.”
Big Hollow
Ameren held an official groundbreaking ceremony on June 1 for Big Hollow, a $900 million electricity-generating plant/power storage facility on the site of the former Rush Island coal-fired plant.
The project was announced last year, and the Missouri Public Service Commission granted the application earlier this year. The new facility will have two distinct parts: an 800-megawatt natural-gas generation facility and a large-scale, lithium-ion battery installation for power storage.
Work has been ongoing at the site since the late 2024 closure of the Rush Island operation. There were shutdown procedures, including the removal of the remaining coal supply; preliminary roadwork; and removal of some of the old plant infrastructure.