MD80 FLC INITIATES EVASIVE MANEUVER DUE TO TCASII RA WHEN ZKC DOES NOT ISSUE TFC ALERT.

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DEPARTING STL ON IFR FLT PLAN TO SGF; ZKC CLRED US TO CLB TO FL180. SHORTLY AFTER THAT; I NOTICED A TARGET ON OUR TCASII CLOSING ON US. BY THE TIME I WAS ABLE TO ASSESS; HE WAS AT FL180 OR ABOUT (ACTUALLY 17500 FT). HE WAS 8 MI AWAY. I ASKED ATC IF THEY HAD A TARGET AT OUR 2 O'CLOCK AND 8 MI. THEY SAID 'YES; HE IS AT 17500 FT.' AT ABOUT THIS TIME; THE TARGET ENTERED OUR 2 MI RANGE ON TCASII AND WE GOT AN RA AT ABOUT 17000 FT AND LEVELED OFF. I SAW THE ACFT GO BY WHEN IT WAS AT THE 2:30 O'CLOCK POS. I TOLD ATC THAT IT WAS VERY CLOSE TO US AND THEY REPLIED; '...17500 FT IS A VFR ALT....' THERE WERE OTHER HUMAN FACTORS INVOLVED IN THIS SUCH AS: TRAINING (ATC); HIGH VOLUME; COMPLEXITY OF SIT (ARRS TO STL JUST WERE SHUT OFF) AND A DEATH IN TRAINER'S FAMILY. THE MGMNT AGREED WITH ME THAT TFC SHOULD HAVE BEEN ISSUED; BUT NOT REQUIRED SINCE OTHER ACFT WERE VFR AND NOT TALKING TO ANYBODY! WITH THE INCREASE OF REGIONAL JETS AND OTHER TFC; FORCING EXECUTIVE AND 'FRACTIONALS' JETS TO GO VFR BELOW FL180; I SEE A BIG PROB ARISING. SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE ABOUT TFC AT VFR ALTS!