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I-29/35 work causing jams on Armour
Project officials working to relieve eastbound Armour traffic
By Jeffrey M. Salem
With traffic congestion growing around the Armour Road exits on Interstate 29/35 thanks to the Paseo Bridge replacement project, officials with North Kansas City and the kcICON Connections Project are changing the traffic flow to try to reduce the vehicle backups along Armour Road.
Alterations to traffic flow included reducing eastbound Armour lanes down to one lane further west of the temporary traffic signal that regulates motorists turning in either direction onto Armour from the interstate. The change took place in mid-August to try and relieve some of the growing congestion, which was noticeably worse in those eastbound Armour lanes west of the I-29/35 interchange, said Maj. Jesse McClendon, with North Kansas City Police.
“We’re going to try to funnel them all into one lane a little bit before they get down to the intersection, hoping that will help alleviate the problem,” McClendon told the City Council on Aug. 5. “And we’re going to have to put up with this for about nine months to a year.”
The lane reduction now occurs near Linn Street.
Jennifer Benefield, community relations director for the $245 million bridge replacement project, said dropping a lane of traffic on eastbound Armour farther away from the congestion problem was just one of the ways officials were trying to deal with the problem.
In addition to the lane drop, southbound vehicles on Ozark will not be allowed to turn left onto eastbound Armour between the times of 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. weekdays until the redesign of the interchange is complete. Vehicles turning onto Armour from Ozark during those times were just adding to the congestion, Benefield said.
“There’s nowhere for them to go and it was creating problems in cross traffic,” she said.
Benefield said the series of traffic lights surrounding the interchange were also expected to become synchronized as part of Mid-America Regional Council’s Operation Green Light, although it was unclear how soon that would occur.
A more traditional angle was also being encouraged by Benefield to help the area’s congestion: she asked motorists to avoid the area.
“We should discourage nonessential trips and avoid peak travel times in the area when possible,” she said.
Benefield also said the daytime congestion was something motorists would have to endure for the entirety of the interchange construction. The project’s contract calls for minimum night construction because of the surrounding area of the interchange.
“There’s a noise ordinance that we have to be conscious of, and there’s a large residential population that lives by that interchange,” Benefield said.
Staff writer Jeffrey M. Salem can be reached at 389-6653 or jeffsalem@npgco.com.
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Alterations to traffic flow included reducing eastbound Armour lanes down to one lane further west of the temporary traffic signal that regulates motorists turning in either direction onto Armour from the interstate. The change took place in mid-August to try and relieve some of the growing congestion, which was noticeably worse in those eastbound Armour lanes west of the I-29/35 interchange, said Maj. Jesse McClendon, with North Kansas City Police.
“We’re going to try to funnel them all into one lane a little bit before they get down to the intersection, hoping that will help alleviate the problem,” McClendon told the City Council on Aug. 5. “And we’re going to have to put up with this for about nine months to a year.”
The lane reduction now occurs near Linn Street.
Jennifer Benefield, community relations director for the $245 million bridge replacement project, said dropping a lane of traffic on eastbound Armour farther away from the congestion problem was just one of the ways officials were trying to deal with the problem.
In addition to the lane drop, southbound vehicles on Ozark will not be allowed to turn left onto eastbound Armour between the times of 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. weekdays until the redesign of the interchange is complete. Vehicles turning onto Armour from Ozark during those times were just adding to the congestion, Benefield said.
“There’s nowhere for them to go and it was creating problems in cross traffic,” she said.
Benefield said the series of traffic lights surrounding the interchange were also expected to become synchronized as part of Mid-America Regional Council’s Operation Green Light, although it was unclear how soon that would occur.
A more traditional angle was also being encouraged by Benefield to help the area’s congestion: she asked motorists to avoid the area.
“We should discourage nonessential trips and avoid peak travel times in the area when possible,” she said.
Benefield also said the daytime congestion was something motorists would have to endure for the entirety of the interchange construction. The project’s contract calls for minimum night construction because of the surrounding area of the interchange.
“There’s a noise ordinance that we have to be conscious of, and there’s a large residential population that lives by that interchange,” Benefield said.
Staff writer Jeffrey M. Salem can be reached at 389-6653 or jeffsalem@npgco.com.