Crews to begin work on Kingshighway interchange

Staging work is set to begin this month on the Highway 40-Kingshighway Boulevard interchange that is part of the area’s “New I-64” highway reconstruction project.

Patients, employees and other visitors to the Medical Campus will begin to see excavators and other heavy equipment in the grassy areas within the existing cloverleaf entrance and exit ramps. Contractors will begin moving dirt to level the ground in preparation for paving temporary traffic lanes. New temporary traffic signals also will be installed on Kingshighway to control traffic flow onto and off of the highway during the construction period.

The Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) and Gateway Constructors Inc. have committed to keeping Kingshighway open and the Medical Center accessible during construction.

The temporary lanes and traffic lights will allow continued access to and from Kingshighway in all directions while the interchange is being rebuilt.

Although there will be ongoing work during April and May, all Kingshighway traffic lanes will remain open until late May or early June, when traffic will be reduced from three lanes to two in each direction over Highway 40 for the overpass work. The lanes will be reduced for no longer than six months, according to Gateway’s contract with MoDOT.

During construction:

• the Kingshighway overpass will be replaced

• north- and southbound traffic will be diverted onto the east side of the bridge to permit demolition and reconstruction of the west half

• traffic then will be diverted onto the new west half of the bridge to allow demolition and reconstruction of the east half

• entrance and exit ramps will be rebuilt in a new configuration to improve traffic flow

Currently, the Kingshighway entrance and exit ramps are designed in a cloverleaf pattern. During construction, drivers will use temporary ramps controlled by traffic signals to enter and exit Highway 40. Upon completion of the project, cars will flow in a “single-point urban interchange” designed to improve traffic movement.

“The existing interchange is a traditional cloverleaf design that isn’t capable of handling modern volume and speeds,” said Dan Galvin, public information officer for the New I-64 reconstruction project. “Cars entering and exiting the highway are navigating sharp curves and slowly merging into lanes of established traffic, which is very disruptive to the overall flow. The new design handles traffic much more efficiently.

“As a construction team, we are committed to keeping this interchange open during construction and reducing traffic lanes for the shortest amount of time possible,” he said. “Although the construction will create some headaches in the short term, people are going to be very happy with how the new interchange improves traffic flow once it’s completed.”

The New I-64 is using a contemporary construction approach known as “design-build,” which means the highway is being designed and built concurrently. Design-build projects have been completed more efficiently in less time because the design engineers and construction teams work more closely together, recognize and solve unforeseen problems more quickly and reach decisions faster.

For more information visit www.thenewi64.org.