Numerous interstates and highways cross the state.
Interstate 70 connects St. Louis and Kansas City via Columbia.
Interstate 55 runs from St. Louis along the Mississippi River south towards Memphis. It serves the cities of Cape Girardeau, Sikeston, and Hayti located in the bootheel region.
Interstate 44 runs from St. Louis to Springfield, Joplin, and on into Oklahoma. Most of the route parallels Historic Route 66. It also serves the cities of St. Clair, Sullivan, Rolla, Waynesville/St. Robert/Fort Leonard Wood, and Lebanon.
Interstate 35 runs from Kansas City to the northeast towards Des Moines and to the southwest towards the Kansas suburbs of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area and later on into Wichita, Kansas. The section of the route from the Cameron interchange, with US 36, to the NE corner of the Interstate 435 loop is part of the Chicago-Kansas City Expressway and is co-signed as State Route 110.
Interstate 29 runs from Kansas City to the northwest towards Omaha/Council Bluffs. The route begins in Downtown Kansas City and parallels US Highway 71 to the north.
Interstate 57 runs a short 20 miles and serves Sikeston and Charleston, then onward to Chicago.
Interstate 64 runs through the St. Louis metro area and ends at I-70.
Interstate 72/ US 36 runs through the northern part of the state from Hannibal to St. Joeseph
US Highway 50 runs east-west through the middle of the state. Cities along include: Lee's Summit, Warrensburg, Knob Noster, Sedalia, Jefferson City, and St. Louis. The portion from Sedalia to Lee's Summit is all freeway. There is new freeway being built West of Jefferson City.
US Highway 71 runs north-along the western part of the state from Iowa to Arkansas, and connects Kansas City and Joplin on a 4 lane expressway.
US Highway 60 runs along the southern portion of the state running from Kentucky to Oklahoma. Between Sikeston and Springfield, all but 60 miles is divided highway. West of Springfield, a short connector route Missouri Highway 360 connects the road with Interstate 44.
US Highway 61 north of the St. Louis area wentzvilleis a four lane highway that is called Avenue of the Saints. It is a combination of highways linked together that will take you to St. Paul Minnesota. Most of this route is open expressway, except for Hannibal. It serves Troy, Bowling Green, and Hannibal.
Other notable well traveled highways include:
US 36 is an expressway running east and west from St. Joseph to Hannibal. The portion of the highway from the Cameron interchange with Interstate 35,eastward to Hannibal, is part of the Chicago-Kansas City Expressway. It is co-signed State Route 110, to match the Illinois section of the CKC route. Main cities on the route include St. Joseph, Cameron, Chillicothe, Brookfield, Macon, Monroe City.
US 54 which will take you from I-70 to Jefferson City via an expressway and to the Lake of the Ozarks tourist destination via a four lane highway from there. This is the fastest way to get to these popular destinations from the east St. Louis, Chicago, Indianapolis.
US 63 is being upgraded in many sections. It cuts pretty much through the middle of the state, north to south. It has a considerable amount of freeway. It serves Kirksville, Macon, Columbia, Jefferson City all of the aforementioned are on a expressway Rolla, Houston, Cabool, and West Plains.
US 67 will take you from St. Louis to Poplar Bluff and then onward to Little Rock. This is expressway from Fredricktown to Interstate 55, just south of St. Louis.
US 65 serves as an expressway from Interstate 44 at Springfield to Branson.
MO 7 and 13 provide expressway service from Kansas city to Springfield via Us 71 at Harrisonville.
By train
There is twice daily Amtrak service from St. Louis to Kansas city. Stops include Kirkwood, Washington, Hermann, Jeferson City, Sedalia, Warrensburg, Lee's Summit, and Independence. These trains are tax subsidized with state funds and fares are reasonable. The on-time performance of these trains has improved greatly recently with the building of new sidings as this line has heavy freight traffic. Amtrak Operates 2 other lines,
By bus
Greyhound runs Interstate 44 from St. Louis to Joplin with stops at Rolla, Fort Leonard Wood/St. Robert, Lebanon, Springfield, and Joplin. They run Interstate 70 from St. Louis to Kansas City, stopping in Columbia and Boonville along with other intermediate stops. Both of these lines stop at the St. Louis airport going either way. They also run Interstate 55 south of St. Louis stopping in Cape Girardeau and Sikeston. Jefferson Lines runs from Kansas City to Joplin and Kansas City to points north. Please check schedules as not all busses stop at all intermediate destinations. Bus travel can be expensive within the state with a ticket from St. Louis to Rolla running $31-$37 dollars for the 1 1/2 hour trip.