FAQs about gate construction, traffic issues Published June 22, 2015 By Col. Kyle Kremer 375th Air Mobility Wing commander SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Illinois -- I want to thank you for your patience as we work diligently to complete necessary security upgrades to our installation gates. The recent security event at Little Rock AFB main gate highlights the need for us to maintain vigilance and proper security measures to protect our Total Force family here at Scott. I fully recognize and appreciate the disruption this construction project is having on your daily commute, and give you my word we are exploring all options to ensure we minimize the impacts on you to the best of our ability. We have received many suggestions on possible solutions to the traffic delays and we examine them all for possible adoption. Many of the suggestions and/or questions we receive have a common theme and I would like to address them for you below. Many seemingly "obvious" solutions have unseen second and third order effects. I respectfully ask for your patience and cooperation as we work through this necessary project, and that you trust that we are doing everything in our ability to complete it efficiently, safely and with the minimum impact to the base population and our guests. In particular, I ask that you not take any frustration with the situation out on our hard-working Defenders and augmentees manning the gates. They are simply enforcing the policies and procedures tasked to them with the goal of keeping us all safe. If you have any suggestions or feedback, I encourage you to send them to our Commander's Action Line or to my 375 AMW/CC organization box so we can evaluate them for implementation. Thank you for being great mission partners! Frequently Asked Questions: Gate construction/traffic issues -When will the construction be finished? This is phase one of a two-part construction project to upgrade the security measures at the entry gates. This first phase is for the Shiloh Gate and is scheduled to complete by Aug. 9, weather permitting. The second phase for the Belleville Gate will begin as soon as Shiloh is completed and will require 6-8 weeks to complete depending on the weather conditions. The entire project is projected to be complete by late Fall. -Why are additional gates not being opened? Aside from requiring more Security Forces manpower (along with augmentees) to open additional gates, the location of the additional access points to the base often presents other safety and traffic flow problems, merely shifting the traffic delays from one location to another. The Scott traffic pattern relies heavily on the multiple lanes along Scott Drive to disperse incoming traffic to the east and west sides of the installation. The roadways from the additional gates which could support vehicles are not designed to handle this amount of traffic and would result in significant delays at key intersections. These delays would then ripple outward and affect traffic throughout the base. The same is true when leaving the base and often the traffic choke points are outside the base perimeter. We are in contact with local municipalities and police forces to assist in managing off-base traffic flow, as well as on base, to minimize impact of traffic diversion due to gate construction. -Why are there not more people checking IDs? During normal duty days, we generally have four checkers in each lane, safely placed under shelter and located on the curbs of each physically divided lane to ensure their safety. Using more personnel in each lane would put them unprotected, in the middle of the roadway, in the elements and jeopardize their safety. Additionally, much like at an intersection when the light turns from red to green, not all cars begin moving forward at the same time and there is a ripple effect. The longer the queue, the longer the ripple effect. Finally, command and control of more personnel checking IDs in the same line is more challenging and less effective, especially when vehicles with passengers who do not have proper identification present themselves. -Why did the temporary gate close so abruptly? The temporary gate road was constructed as a "haul road" to support runway construction 10 years ago and was not made to the standards for permanent road construction. Heavy use during this month's unanticipated weather degraded its condition. The condition of the road under the top cover was unrecognizable until the increased traffic and significant rainfall caused the road structure to fail and create a potential hazard for further steady traffic. The gate was closed as a safety precaution until the weather clears and our Engineers can fix the road. All necessary materials have been ordered; repair work will begin as soon as the weather clears. We anticipate that work to start on Tuesday, 23 June; taking about two weeks to complete." -Is there going to be any relief in sight for any of the gate issues? Unfortunately, there is no magic answer to eliminate the resulting traffic delays due to the volume of vehicles entering and exiting the base during our peak travel hours. We are constantly monitoring transit times, road conditions, and working with experienced personnel on making any adjustments that might help improve traffic flow. We're also working with installation leaders and supervisors to work with their staff to stagger arrival/departure times and work schedules to accommodate this temporary situation as well as encourage patience as the repair work continues. -Congestion is very bad near the intersections that lead to the gates causing people to block the intersections, can something be done about this as it is a safety hazard? We're working with local police departments on assisting with off-base traffic flows, particularly addressing intersection blockages and vehicles unsafely attempting to go around traffic lines. Current Gate Hours: Shiloh Inbound: Open 24/7 Shiloh Outbound: Closed for repairs Belleville Inbound: 4:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. Belleville Outbound: Open 24/7 Cardinal Creek Inbound: 6-8 a.m. Cardinal Creek Outbound: 24/7 CVIS: For commercial use only 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Visitor Control Center: Open 24/7