BonnerSprings.com

As the time nears to break dirt on the massive reconstruction of the interchange at Kansas Highway 7 and Interstate 70, the state will have one more public meeting to present the most updated details of the plans.

Representatives with the Kansas Department of Transportation first presented those details Monday to the Bonner Springs City Council, highlighting a change in plans for the style of interchange at K-7 and 130th Street and aesthetic elements planned for the bridges in the interchange. The same information will be viewed by the public at the meeting set for Jan. 26 at Bonner Springs High School.

Funding has been approved for the first three phases of the 10-phase project, which also includes new interchanges with K-7 at Kansas Avenue and 130th Street. Aaron Frits, KDOT representative, said the first project would be part one of phase two — the Riverview Avenue bridge — which will be let for bids in December.

The next phase let for bids is phase one — much of the west half of the interchange — in May of 2013, followed by bids for part two of phase two — turning 118th Street from an underpass into an overpass — in December 2013, and phase three, which will widen I-70 from K-7 to 110th Street, in December 2014.

Frits said KDOT was completing final design on the next seven phases and identifying all the right of way it will need for those phases.

Originally, the plan called for a single-point urban interchange, like the interchange at 87th Street and Interstate 35 in Lenexa, at K-7 and Kansas Avenue and at K-7 and 130th Street. However, officials thought that type of interchange would still create long left-hand turn queues on 130th Street.

Now the design calls for a “diverging diamond” interchange at 130th Street — a type of interchange relatively new to the Kansas City area.

“The key feature is it actually switches you to the opposite side of the road to allow free left-hand turns instead of having to wait at a signal,” Fritz said.

Fritz also covered some aesthetic improvements that will be put on the bridges involved with the interchange.

“We don’t just put out plain Jane bridges; we like to spiff them up a little,” he said.

The bridges will include grass imprints on concrete barrier walls lining the pedestrian walkways, wrought iron black railing fences and features on the piers and columns, similar to what can be found on the 142nd Street bridge over I-70 and the new Kump Avenue bridge.

One of the first projects before interchange construction can begin will be the relocation of utilities, which the city of Bonner Springs will have to fund in part.

KDOT officials said the state would reimburse the city for the $82,000 cost of moving waterlines for the Riverview bridge area, and it looks like there will be no cost related to the 118th Street bridge.

Bonner currently serves five customers through lines under I-70, but when an overpass is built for the street, the cost to relocate the waterline was going to be prohibitive. So those customers will be turned over to BPU, which has nine customers in the area.

“Trying to spend close to $1 million for five customers just didn’t make sense,” John Helin, city manager, said.

But a good portion of the costs to relocate utilities in affected areas west of K-7 may well fall to the city. If so, KDOT officials said the city could take advantage of KDOT’s revolving loan fund to help cover costs rather than using a bond issue.

KDOT officials said they plans to conduct group meetings for property owners and businesses at Kansas Avenue, Canaan and 130th Street, hopefully before the Jan. 26 public meeting.

That meeting will run 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the BSHS cafeteria, with presentations at 5:20 and 6:20. Officials said they hoped to show video of a diverging diamond interchange to help people understand how it works.

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