Missouri Complete Streets Information Center

Examples of Complete Streets features (which vary by local context):

• Shoulders on rural roads
• Sidewalks, crosswalks, and accessible curb cuts
• Bicycle lanes
• Median refuges
• Bus shelters
• Bump outs for sidewalks and bus stops
• Audible pedestrian signals

Keep in mind that a Complete Streets policy does not mandate these or any other specific features.  Rather, Complete Streets policies require full evaluation of the needs of pedestrians, bicyclists, transit users, and drivers of all ages and ability levels, evaluation of potential use and context, and use of national best practices and guidelines when providing for users of all types, in consideration of budget and right-of-way limitations.

In short, Complete Streets says: Provide what is needed, where it is needed, to provide safety an access for all users.

Complete Streets may look very, very different in the middle of a big city vs in a suburb vs in a small town vs in a rural area.  Complete Streets is a philosophy of design of our roads, streets, and transportation system as a whole, not a set of specific requirements for every street or road.

Missouri is a national Complete Streets leader:

Over the past few years, Missouri has become a national leader in the Complete Streets movement.

The state now has a large number of Complete Streets policies--policies adopted Missouri municipalities, including the largest county and six largest cities, cover more than 1.6 million of the state's residents, while policies adopted by Metropolitan Planning Organizations cover over half the state's population.

In addition, Missouri's policies have been recognized as among the best in the nation--they are national models.

We urge municipalities, planning organizations, and other agencies which have not yet adopted Complete Streets policies to carefully examine the many model policies adopted by Missouri municipalities and agencies, and start working for the adoption of their own Complete Streets policy.

The number of Complete Streets policies has been growing steadily in Missouri:

• 2001 - 0 policies
• 2002 - 1 policy
• 2007 - 3 policies
• 2008 - 5 policies
• 2009 - 5 policies
• 2010 - 13 policies
• 2011 - 20 policies
• 2012 - 23 policies
• 2014 - 26 policies
• 2015 - 27 policies
• 2016 - 32 policies
• 2017 - 37 policies
• 2018 - 43 policies
• 2019 - 44 policies
• 2021 - 45 policies

More info:

• View a map showing all Missouri Complete Streets Policies
• More about the progress on Complete Streets in Missouri--including the next steps for Complete Streets in Missouri at the city, county, regional, and state levels.

Statewide Complete Streets Resolution:

HCR 23, a House/Senate concurrent resolution expressing the Missouri General Assembly's support for Complete Streets policies at all levels of government was adopted in May 2011.  

HCR 23 expresses support for Complete Streets and urges MoDOT, cities, counties, metropolitan planning organizations, and regional planning councils to follow Complete Streets principles and adopt Complete Streets policies.

We are encouraging MoDOT to continue to work to adopt Complete Streets policy elements in in long range plan, its Engineering Policy Guide, the MoDOT Tracker, and its funding priorities.

One of our major goals is for all funds under any new funding proposal for MoDOT to be spent under Complete Streets guidelines.

Read the full text of HCR 23 here--it really makes the case for the importance of Complete Streets across Missouri, and it was approved by both Chambers of the Missouri General Assembly.

More of specific goals for how MoDOT can better provide for the needs of bicyclists and pedestrians here.

In Missouri communities:

More than 2.7 million Missourians currently live in a municipality with a Complete Streets policy, including:

• St. Louis County (2014); Jackson County (2012)
• St. Louis City (2010; updated 2015)
• Kansas City (2011; updated 2017)
• Independence (2011), Lee's Summit (2010), Blue Springs (2011), Grandview (2011), and Belton (2012) on the Missouri side of the Kansas City area (as well as several cities and counties on the Kansas side of the metro area)
• De Soto (2008), Festus (2010), Crystal City (2010), Herculaneum (2010), and Pevely (2010) in Jefferson County  
• Ferguson (2008), Clayton (2012), University City (2014), Pagedale (2015) and Florissant (2016) in suburban St. Louis
• Columbia (2004)
• Elsberry (2010) in northeast Missouri
• Springfield (Strategic Plan 2014; Policy 2014)
• Warsaw (2016)
• Eldon (2017)
• Pineville (2016)
• Anderson (2016)
• Caruthersville (2017)
• Southwest City (2017)
• Rolla (2017)
• Noel (2017)
• Cape Girardeau (2018)
• Cooter (2018)
• Monett (2018)
• Salem (2018)
• Hayti (2018)
• Moberly (2018)
• Stockton (2019)
• Joplin (2021)

Find specific steps your community can take to become friendlier for bicycling and walking here.

In Regional Planning Organizations and Metropolitan Planning Organizations:

More than 3.2 million Missourians live in Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) areas that have adopted Complete Streets policies--over 50% of the state's population.

Some MPOs cover areas of adjoining states, meaning that in total over 4.7 million citizens are covered by the MPO-level Complete Streets policies listed below.

Six Metropolitan Transportation Organizations (MPOs) in Missouri have adopted Complete Streets Policies as part of their long-range transportation planning documents and/or as specific standalone policies; a fifth is currently developing a Complete Streets Policy:

• The Greater St. Joseph Area MPO (St Joseph area): Bike/Ped Policy (2002), Long Range Plan (2010)
• East-West Gateway Coordinating Council (St. Louis area, 2007): Great Streets Initiative (2006), Long Range Plan (2007, 2011, 2015)
• Mid-America Regional Council (Kansas City area): Complete Streets Policy Updates (2015 & 2023), Complete Streets Policy and Handbook (2012, updated 2018), Long Range Plan (2010)
• Ozark Transportation Organization (Springfield Area): Long Range Plan (2011)
• CATSO (Columbia): Complete Streets Policy (2014)
• CAMPO (Jefferson City): Livable Streets Policy (2016)

 Complete Streets elements within the Long-Range plans are often found in the bicycle and pedestrian chapter of the plan. However, the most recent trend is to incorporate Complete Streets elements throughout the plans, in every chapter as appropriate. For example, the Policy Framework chapter of Mid-America Regional Council's Long-Range Plan mentions Complete Streets because it is an important part of the plan's "Accessibility" Policy Goal.  Similarly, the chapter on Project Solicitation and Evaluation references the Accessibility Policy Goal, and thus the Complete Streets elements, because they are used as part of the project evaluation process.  So nearly every chapter incorporates Complete Streets elements and outlook--though in ways that make sense in context and do not necessarily mention "Complete Streets" by name.

Eight MPOs cover Missouri's larger metropolitan areas and nineteen RPCs cover the remainder of the entire state of Missouri.  These regional planning councils set transportation policy and priorities for the regions they cover. You can find the list of all eight Missouri MPOs here and Missouri's 19 RPCs here.  Those lists include links to contact information for your local MPO or RPC.

Find a list of specific steps your local MPO or RPC can take to become friendier for bicycling and walking here.

The goal for Missouri:

MoBikeFed's Vision of Bicycling and Walking in Missouri expresses our goal for Complete Streets in Missouri: Complete Streets policies adopted by the Missouri Department of Transportation and by every level of government that makes decisions about transportation planning and funding – cities, counties, regional planning councils, and metropolitan planning organizations.

At the national level:

The U.S. Department of Transportation has issued a Policy Statement strongly supporting Complete Streets. The policy statement states:

The DOT policy is to incorporate safe and convenient walking and bicycling facilities into transportation projects. Every transportation agency, including DOT, has the responsibility to improve conditions and opportunities for walking and bicycling and to integrate walking and bicycling into their transportation systems. Because of the numerous individual and community benefits that walking and bicycling provide — including health, safety, environmental, transportation, and quality of life — transportation agencies are encouraged to go beyond minimum standards to provide safe and convenient facilities for these modes.

Congress is considering level legislation that would require Completes Streets policies be adopted by every state department of transportation and every metropolitan planning organization. H.R. 1780 and S. 1056 are the current bills in the House and Senate, respectively. More information here.

National Complete Streets Coalition:

For more information visit www.completestreets.org.

Missouri Livable Streets

Missouri Livable Streets is a coalition of organizations and agencies working together for Complete Streets policies and implementation at every level of government in Missouri.  The Missouri Livable Streets web site has a large number of resources about Complete Streets in Missouri.

What you can do:

• Contact your legislators and elected officials and say “Complete My Street!”
• Provide your local city council or regional planning organization with a sample Complete Streets policy (see right sidebar) or the Complete Streets Design Guidelines
• Take a look at our statewide Complete Streets strategy and help us move forward with the next steps for Complete Streets in Missouri
• Join your local and/or state advocacy organization
• Read the Missouri Livable Streets Advocacy Manual for many more ideas.

Download/print the MBF Complete Streets brochure (PDF)

Letters and statements of support compiled for HCR 23, the Complete Streets Resolution (PDF)