Busy road construction season ahead for Kansas City area

Drivers might have already noticed that some orange barrels have popped up across the Kansas City area this spring.

Let that be a warning, because there will be more — lots more as the road construction season gets underway.

“It’s going to be busy,” said Markl Johnson, senior customer relations specialist for the Missouri Department of Transportation in Kansas City. “It’s going to be very busy.”

Crews started working in the Interstate 29 corridor last month rehabilitating 12 bridges along I-29 from Cookingham Drive to Missouri 45/Northwest 64th Street.

That six-month-long project could affect drivers who typically use I-29 to get to Kansas City International Airport as the work causes lane reductions, narrow lanes and ramp closures.

Transportation officials suggest motorists adjust travel time getting to and from the airport or to consider using alternate routes, such as Interstate 435 and U.S. 169.

Here’s a look at some other major projects on the Missouri side that are underway or on the way this summer:

▪ Interstate 35 and Pleasant Valley Road interchange in Clay County. This $40.5 million corridor project in the heart of Clay County will improve I-35 from Interstate 435 to 1 mile north of Pleasant Valley Road and the I-35 and Pleasant Valley Road interchange. Work will also affect South Liberty Parkway, U.S. 69 and Church, Sobbie, Pleasant Valley roads.

The project is underway and all new pavement is expected to open by the end of 2016. All construction will be completed by the following July.

▪ Interstate 70 Black Water River Bridge project in Saline County. Work began this week on a bridge rehabilitation pavement project along I-70 from the Black Water River Bridge to Cooper County. The project, which will affect lake traffic, is expected to cause heavy congestion through the area. It is expected to be completed in September.

▪ Interstate 70 Manchester Bridge project in Jackson County. Work continues on the Manchester Bridge Project, which is expected to be completed by mid-December. The $63 million project will replace the Interstate 70 bridges over Manchester Trafficway, the Blue River and the adjacent rail yard. The U.S. 40 bridge reopened last month and sections of the new Manchester Bridge have opened to traffic.

▪ U.S. 69 Missouri River Bridge replacement project in Platte and Wyandotte counties. Work is underway to replace the Fairfax and Platte Purchase bridges, which carried U.S. 69 over the Missouri River and connects Wyandotte County to Platte County. Construction began on the $79 million project last fall, and the new bridge is expected to open to traffic by December 2016.

▪ Interstate 435 pavement resurfacing project in Clay County. Work is underway on the repaving of I-435 between Northwest Cookingham Drive to Interstate 35. The project is expected to be completed in early November.

Meanwhile, on the Kansas side of the metropolitan area, there are several projects affecting traffic. Earlier this spring, work began on a project to reconstruct the pavement of Interstate 35, from Kansas 7/151st Street interchange to the Santa Fe interchange in Olathe. Construction is expected to be completed by early December.

Here’s a look at some other major projects on the Kansas side that are underway or on the way this summer:

▪ Bridge repair and asphalt overlay project in Johnson County. Crews will repair a bridge and apply an asphalt overlay along Interstate 35 from Homestead Lane south to Johnson County line. Traffic will be reduced to a single lane in both directions between Lone Elm Road and the county line. The project is expected to start in mid-May and take less than a month.

▪ Southbound Interstate 35 Bridge over Southwest Boulevard in Johnson County. Crews will make structural repairs of both bridges as well as patching and installing an overlay to the deck of the southbound bridge over Southwest Boulevard. Construction expected to start early this summer and be completed by fall.

▪ Westbound Interstate 435 bridge repairs over Indian Creek in Johnson County. Crews patch the deck and install and concrete overlay on the bridge just west of State Line Road. Construction will start early this summer and should take about 40 days. There will be lane reductions on westbound I-435 and the closure of the ramp from State Line Road during the repairs.

▪ Johnson County Gateway Project. The Johnson County Gateway Project, a complete overhaul of the Kansas 10, Interstate 35 and Interstate 435 interchange, got underway last year and continues through 2016. The three-year, $288 million project is the largest highway project ever done in Kansas. For a complete list of this year’s project, see the project’s website.

▪ U.S. 69/18th Street Expressway bridge repair in Wyandotte County. Crews will repair the bridge over the Kansas River and railroad tracks. This should be completed early in the construction season.

▪ U.S. 69/18th Street Expressway resurfacing in Wyandotte County. Crews will patch and resurface U.S. 69 from Roeland Park to the bridge over the rail hump yard. The project will be completed this year with most of the work being done at night.

▪ Phase 3 of the Kansas 7 and Interstate 70 Interchange project in Wyandotte County. Crews will widen I-70 to three lanes in each direction between K-7 and 110th Street. The project is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2016.

▪ Interstate 70 Multi-bridge Repair project in Wyandotte County. Crews are repairing and replacing bridge deck several bridges in the I-70 and Interstate 635 area. The northbound and southbound I-635 ramps to eastbound I-70 are closed through the duration of the project. The work is expected to be completed in late December. For more on the project, tap here for the project handout.

▪ Interstate 435 over the Missouri River in Wyandotte County. Crews will repair the bridges that carry both northbound and southbound I-435 over the Missouri River. The project is expected to be completed this year. Traffic will be reduced to two lanes through the construction.

▪ U.S. 73 overlay project in Leavenworth. Crews will place an asphalt overlay over the existing surface along U.S. 73 from Gilman Road in Lansing to Limit Street in Leavenworth. The contractor has 25 working days to complete the project. The work will generally take place between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m.

▪ U.S. 73/Kansas 7 pavement replacement project from Leavenworth to Lowemont. Crews will replace the concrete pavement. The project is expected to be completed by mid-summer.

▪ U.S. 73/Kansas 7 pavement replacement project in Leavenworth. Crews will replace the concrete pavement along with the curbs and gutters from the Centennial Bridge/Fourth Street to 20th Street in Leavenworth. The project is expected to be completed this year.

This story was originally published May 7, 2015 at 2:21 PM with the headline "Busy road construction season ahead for Kansas City area."