KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Southwest Boulevard in Kansas City, Missouri, may soon have fewer lanes, more parking, safer crosswalks, and other changes based on recommendations from staff engineers.
City staff presented a plan to implement 37 recommendations during the city’s Transportation, Infrastructure, and Operations Committee meeting Tuesday morning.
The full city council will review the resolution and make a final decision on implementing the changes at Thursday afternoon’s legislative meeting.
LINK | View the presentation
The recommendations come from a year-long study examining how to improve the street from Broadway Boulevard to 31st Street. The study found there were 275 car crashes on the road over the past four years, 10 of which involved a bicyclist or pedestrian.
The plan from engineers is to create a “road diet” along Southeast Boulevard.
This turns the four-lane street into one lane of traffic in each direction, with a center turning lane. This would force cars to slow down, create more parking and making it safer for people to walk across the street.
The plan would also add greenery to the street.
Other recommendations include adding lighting underneath the Interstate 35 bridge and installing nets under the bridge to keep pigeons away.
Engineers would like to replace traffic signals under the bridge as well. Currently, posts on either side of the street support traffic signals; this plan calls for installing signals that hang over the street.
Recommendations also call for adding public art and signage designating the road as a gateway to the predominantly Hispanic Westside neighborhood.
The first phase of the project would focus on improvements to Southwest Boulevard from Broadway Boulevard to 25th Street. Ideally, the city would like to finish that project by the summer of 2026 before the World Cup comes to Kansas City.
The cost associated with phase 1 recommendations totals $5.195 million. The city would use money from sidewalk and road paving funds as well as other sources to cover the costs.
Members of the public can learn more about the proposal at two upcoming community outreach meetings.
- Sacred Heart Neighborhood Meeting: Sunday, Oct. 6, at 3 p.m. at 28 Event Space, 2730 Mercer Street.
- Westside Neighborhood Association Meeting: Thursday, Oct. 17, at 6 p.m. at Guadalupe Center, 1015 Avenida Cesar Chavez.
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KSHB 41 reporter Charlie Keegan covers politics in Kansas, Missouri and at the local level. Share your story idea with Charlie.
