This KC highway will close for over 200 days as part of Buck O’Neil bridge replacement
Part of Kansas City’s downtown loop highways will close for a long time while the replacement for the Buck O’Neil Bridge is built near the northwest corner of downtown, Missouri transportation officials announced Monday.
Crews will close northbound Interstate 35 from 12th Street to eastbound Interstate 70 tentatively beginning March 7, the Missouri Department of Transportation announced at press conference Monday morning.
The stretch of highway on the west side of Kansas City will be closed for about 275 days for the construction of a new retaining wall along I-35 and for a new bridge over Sixth Street.
Crews will also close northbound I-35 to westbound I-70 in that area during the same period for bridge rehabilitation work.
About 23,950 cars, trucks and buses use the northbound stretch of I-35 in that area on weekdays, according to 2020 annual average weekday traffic volume. A marked detour will take drivers traveling on I-35 to reconnect with northbound U.S. 169 highway.
The closure is part of the $220 million project to replace the aging Buck O’Neil Bridge, which carries U.S. 169 over the Missouri River near the Wheeler Downtown Airport. The bridge, a key connection between the Northland and downtown Kansas City, opened in 1956. While safe, the bridge formerly known as the Broadway Bridge is nearing the end of its projected lifespan.
Kansas City and MoDOT worked together to secure the funding for the new bridge. Massman-Clarkson, A Joint Venture, is the design-build contractor chosen for the project, which is expected to be completed in 2024. The team includes the following Massman Construction Co., Clarkson Construction Co. and HNTB Corporation, all of Kansas City.
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This story was originally published January 31, 2022 at 10:36 AM.
