Tollway on U.S. 69 in Johnson County? Overland Park officials are exploring it
Overland Park is exploring ways to pay to widen U.S. 69 — the most congested four-lane highway in Kansas. One option, officials said Monday, could be turning the road into a tollway.
Public Works Director Tony Hofmann provided an update to the City Council’s public works committee meeting. While the road is a state highway, he said the city has been seeking grants to accelerate the widening project, which would make U.S. 69 six lanes from Interstate 435 south to 167th Street.
City Engineer Lorraine Basalo told the committee that the city and the Kansas Turnpike Authority have authorized a preliminary cost analysis to “explore potential revenue generation” on the highway, which could include “price-managed lanes.”
“The primary questions we’re considering at this time is what value and what revenue generation could that bring, and could that support the construction operation and maintenance of U.S. 69,” Basalo told council members. “And based on the findings of that pre-analysis, we would be able to determine if there is an interest in being able to further advancing it into a more detailed analysis.”
The initial study should be finished by the end of the year, she said.
Hofmann said the city did not win two grants it applied for to help pay for the project, one from the U.S. Department of Transportation and the other from the Kansas Department of Transportation. But the city will continue to seek grants.
To ease the flow of traffic off of the highway, the city applied for a cost-sharing grant from KDOT to help widen 167th Street to four lanes, from Antioch Road to Metcalf Avenue, he said. While the grant was not awarded, he said the city will likely apply again next spring.
Last fall, Overland Park officials, the chamber and business leaders started urging state leaders to get the project done. Many said that the road has become more dangerous as traffic increases, and that reconstructing it would help support more development along the corridor.
Around 80,000 vehicles travel the stretch of U.S. 69 each day.
The project would follow several others across the region aimed at relieving highway congestion as Johnson County grows. The southbound ramp to Overland Parkway/U.S. 69 has been closed for a $3.7 million bridge repair project, which should be completed this winter, officials have said.
Then this spring, work should begin on a $16.5 million project to widen Interstate 35 under the 75th Street bridge — which is one of the worst bottlenecks in Johnson County.
Meanwhile, Olathe recently won a $10 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to help pay for a $28 million project to reconfigure and expand the interchange at I-35 and 119th Street.
