Interstate 70: St. Louis – Missouri

Take a short but high-speed ride through the heart of suburban St. Louis as we follow a 4-mile stretch of Interstate 70 from Lambert International Airport to Interstate 270. Though brief, this segment of I-70 offers a vital glimpse into the infrastructure that powers the region—serving as both a local commuter route and a gateway to the wider Midwest.

We begin our journey just outside the terminal loop of St. Louis Lambert International Airport, merging onto westbound I-70 at Exit 236. Immediately, the energy of a major metropolitan corridor surrounds us. Aircraft taxi nearby and overhead on parallel runways, while long stretches of access roads and parking facilities line the highway’s shoulders. This airport-adjacent stretch is a constant hum of activity, with shuttle buses, rental cars, and out-of-town drivers blending into the local flow.

Heading west, we parallel the southern boundary of the airport as the highway runs in a gently curving course. At Exit 235, we encounter US-67 (Lindbergh Boulevard)—a major north-south arterial that connects much of North County to St. Louis’s inner suburbs. This intersection also serves as a historic marker: Lindbergh Boulevard was once part of the famed US Route 66, giving this interchange a dash of nostalgic weight beneath its utilitarian surface.

Past Lindbergh, the surroundings shift subtly. Commercial strips and roadside motels give way to leafy buffer zones and the residential fringes of Hazelwood and Bridgeton. While this area is dense with infrastructure—rail yards, logistics centers, and access roads feeding into the airport—it also represents a transitional zone between the urban core and outer suburban sprawl.

As we approach Exit 232A, the cloverleaf interchange with Interstate 270, our ride concludes at one of the most critical junctions in the St. Louis area. I-270 serves as the region’s outer beltway, looping around the city and connecting major interstates including I-44, I-64, and I-55. For travelers continuing west on I-70, this interchange marks the moment when the road breaks free of the urban grid and begins its more open run toward St. Charles, Columbia, and eventually Kansas City.

Though short, this drive exemplifies the connective tissue of America’s interstate system: a place where air and road travel intertwine, where urban and suburban meet, and where regional traffic blends with cross-country flow. It’s a brief but revealing glimpse into the living infrastructure of Greater St. Louis.