A Missouri Highway and Transportation Department official said Tuesday that parts of an Interstate-66 feasibility study should help state officials plan highway corridors.

"I would assume each state will look at the study to see what it says for them and try to take advantage of information that applies to them," said the official, Lew Hancock, assistant division engineer for planning.

"I think the real value of the report is looking at the study to see what applies to their states and also reviewing the future technology that was studied, not only in this corridor but which ones we might want to think about in the state of Missouri," said Hancock.

The study was funded by Congress after a coast-to-coast corridor was identified in the 1991 federal highway bill as one of 21 high-priority corridors. It not only included a review of a new interstate highway, but also new technologies that might be used on the route.

An executive summary released last week concluded that, while certain segments of the route might be feasible, the corridor does not meet economic feasibility tests from a national perspective.

Ten states participated in the study and had representatives on a steering committee. The committee was chaired by Tom Weeks of the Federal Highway Administration. The Missouri highway department served as lead state in the study.

Kyle Kittrell, a planning-program engineer with the department, served as Missouri's representative. Kittrell was out of town, but Hancock said he will attend a meeting July 7 in St. Louis where consultants who did the report will explain their findings to the committee.

Hancock explained that the steering committee will review the study. Once it is accepted, the report will be forwarded to Congress for its consideration and action.

Hancock predicted that state highway departments will seek federal funding for further study of parts of the corridor that appear economically feasible.

Another important part of the feasibility study is that it has identified potential environmental problems such as wetlands, mountains, forests, and Indian reservations that might be difficult to cross, he said.

Hancock said most of what was projected as the I-66 corridor across Missouri will still be built, though not necessarily to interstate standards.

"We are proceeding with Highway 60, because we feel there is a need for a four-lane highway across the southern part of the state," said Hancock. He said that project will continue regardless of what becomes of the I-66 corridor.

There are also commitments to improve Highway 34 from Van Buren to Cape Girardeau. It was regarded as one of the potential routes for I-66. Current state highway planning could eventually turn Highway 34 into a four-lane road.