KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Missouri Department of Transportation will close a seven mile stretch of Interstate 70 Friday night and reopen it Sunday morning.
Several road and ramp closures will take effect Thursday night as part of the Missouri Department of Transportation's work reconfiguring the interchange of I-70 and I-435.
Beginning Thursday, Sept 5 at 7 p.m. MoDOT will close the ramp connecting northbound I-435 to westbound I-70 and the ramp taking southbound I-435 to eastbound I-70. Those ramps will remain closed until the spring of 2020.
Beginning Friday, September 6 at 9 p.m. MoDOT will close I-70 in both directions between I-435 and I-470/Route 291 in Jackson County, Missouri. The interstate will reopen by 5 a.m. Monday, September 9.
Travelers headed eastbound on I-70 will notice the interstate go to one lane at Manchester Trafficway. All traffic will be forced to exit I-70 at the ramp to southbound I-435.
MoDOT will reduce westbound I-70 to one lane before the Route 291/I-470 interchange. All traffic will be detoured onto southbound Route 291/I-470.
The closures are part of MoDOTs work turning the interchange of I-70 and I-435 into a partial turbine interchange.
"This will be the first of its kind in the area. The new ramps will enter a circular connector and then the entrance and exit ramps spin off of that circular connector to make your movements and connections," explained Matt Killion, and area engineer with MoDOT.
The agency says the new design will eliminate left-lane exits and reduce the amount of weaving cars do making the intersection safer.
Construction on the new interchange is not expected to end until December 2020. For more information on the project and for detours related to events at the Truman Sports Complex, click here.
