A traffic signal at the entrance to Oakville Middle and Wohlwend Elementary schools went live last week, in time for the start of the 2011-2012 school year.
The new signal on Telegraph Road began cycling Aug. 4, ahead of the first day of school on Aug. 17.
The traffic signal includes a pedestrian crosswalk and is fully operational throughout the day.
Last summer, the Mehlville Board of Education voted to approve an $80,000 contract with the Missouri Department of Transportation to install the signal at the entrance to the shared campus.
MoDOT and former Superintendent Terry Noble negotiated the agreement.
Initial estimates of the district’s share of the project exceeded $300,000, and the $80,000 contract was a reduction of $220,000 from those original estimates. The total project cost was estimated at $251,000.
One reason for the cost savings was MoDOT’s decision not to require the district to pay for an engineering study or relocation of utilities, officials have said.
Officials also have credited the work of Mehlville parents Donna Seidel and Rosemary Nagy, who led a campaign for the signal’s installation, as well as support from former state Rep. Sue Schoemehl of Oakville.
