KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Construction is about to ramp up again in the Kansas City area with several planned interstate ramp closures announced, including several for the Buck O’Neil/U.S. 169 Missouri River Bridge Replacement Project.
As part of that project, the ramp from Interstate 670 to northbound Interstate 35 will close at 7 p.m. on Sunday. The closure is expected to last nine months to accommodate bridge work.
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To install signs, the right lane of westbound I-670 between Oak Street and I-35 will be closed at 5 p.m. on Sunday until 6 a.m. on Monday morning.
MoDOT also plans to close northbound I-35 at 12th Street exit at 12:01 a.m. on Monday for a nine-month bridge reconstruction project.
The closure also will include all ramps past the 12th Street exit from northbound I-35 to Broadway Boulevard as well as the ramps from northbound I-35 to Interstate 70 in both directions at the northwest corner of the Downtown Loop.
To allow crews to install signs and perform some pavement work, the two right lanes of northbound I-35 will be closed at I-670 from 8 to 11 p.m. on Sunday.
The two left lanes of I-35 at I-670 will close for similar work at 11 p.m. on Sunday until 6 a.m. on Monday.
The Buck O’Neil Bridge Project, which will cost approximately $220 million, is expected to be completed in 2024. Officials broke ground on the project in January 2021.
The bridge project is a federal, state and local collaboration, including $25 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation and $40 million from the Mid-America Regional Council. State and local dollars will cover the rest.
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The bridge serves as a key connector between downtown and the Northland, which has been championed by city planners and residents.
"While safe, the bridge is nearing the end of its projected service life,” MoDOT said in a statement announcing the closures.
The closures originally were slated to begin this week.
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MoDOT also has a series of ramp closures planned in Grandview beginning next week as part of the city’s I-49 Outer Road Conversion Project, a $15-million project started last summer.
The ramp from Main Street to southbound Interstate 49 will close at 7 a.m. on Monday until approximately April 7. The detour will direct motorists south to 140th Street.
A new ramp will be built.
Crews also will close a portion of the east outer road along I-49 between White Avenue and the northbound I-40 exit ramp to 140th Street beginning March 14 through June 12.
A new roundabout will be installed at 143rd Street.
