K-7 & 55th Street/Johnson Drive Interchange Project in Shawnee, KS- Work to Begin Monday, March 29th

-KDOT News Release

K-7 & 55th Street/Johnson Drive Interchange Project Work to Begin in Johnson County

Weather permitting, beginning at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, March 29, access to and from Johnson Drive from both northbound and southbound K-7 will be closed for construction work on the new K-7 & 55th Street/Johnson Drive interchange project in Johnson County.

Marked detours for project-related closures will be provided via signage on K-7 and adjoining city streets, and will also be included on a full-color interchange project detour map.  To provide drivers with an easy to follow detour route, the City of Shawnee is placing color coordinated arrows on the pavement along the detour routes.  The color of the arrows will coordinate with each individual detour route included on the project detour map.  The interchange project detour map is available online at:http://www.ksdot.org/kcMetro/projectstudytest.asp. 

To view an aerial map of detour routes available during construction on the interchange project, click here.  In addition, drivers can pick up project information, including the detour map and construction phasing/traffic impact map at: 1) Bank of Blue Valley, 5520 Hedge Lane Terrace; and/or at 2) Security Bank of Kansas City, 5450 Roberts Street, during normal business hours.

Johnson Drive access to and from K-7 will close on Monday, March 29, for construction work on the east side of the interchange project.  During the Johnson Drive closure, drivers will detour via 47th Street to Silverheel Street to Woodsonia Drive (blue detour route).  In early August 2010, the new Silverheel Street (a City of Shawnee construction project) spur located via Clear Creek Parkway south of the interchange project is scheduled to open providing an additional detour route (purple detour route).  Drivers will then be able to detour via Clear Creek Parkway to Silverheel Street to Woodsonia Drive.  Johnson Drive access to and from K-7 is scheduled to reopen to all traffic in mid-2011.

In early June 2010, 55th Street west of K-7 is scheduled to close for construction work on the new roundabout that will be located on the west side of the interchange.  During the 55th Street closure, traffic will detour via 47th Street to Old K-7 Highway (red detour route) or via Clear Creek Parkway to Hedge Lane Terrace (green detour route).

Advance message boards will alert drivers to all lane and ramp closures on the interchange project.  Drivers should expect delays and are advised to use alternate routes.  Updated daily lane/ramp closure information for the project can be viewed online at: www.ksdot.org/kcmetro/laneclose.asp.

The interchange project includes construction of a roundabout to merge the K-7 on- and off-ramps with 55th Street/Johnson Drive and a second roundabout will be constructed west of K-7 at the intersection of Hedge Lane Terrace and 55th Street.  Also included with the project is the construction of a side-road overpass at Clear Creek Parkway and K-7 and the already completed construction of Hedge Lane Terrace from 55th Street south to Clear Creek Parkway.  When the interchange project is completed, 55th Street/Johnson Drive will run under K-7.

Miles Excavating, Inc. (Basehor, KS) is the primary contractor on the interchange project with a total contract cost of $21.4 million.  The K-7 & 55th Street/Johnson Drive interchange project is a cooperative effort, funded in part by the Kansas Department of Transportation and the City of Shawnee.  The entire K-7 & 55th Street/Johnson Drive interchange project is scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2011. 

The Kansas Department of Transportation urges all motorists to be alert, obey the warning signs, and “Give ‘Em a Brake!” when approaching and driving through the project work zone.  For more project information, please contact Kimberly Qualls, Northeast Kansas Public Affairs Manager, at (785) 640-9340, or Amy Pope, Bonner Springs Construction Engineer, at (913) 721-2754.