The Kansas Department of Transportation has officially begun the $27.5 million project on the K-18 and Interstate 70 interchange, with King Construction of Hesston as the prime contractor. The construction is intended to relieve traffic and safety concerns, which are especially prominent during peak weekday transportation, trucking hours and Kansas State football games, Ryan Robinson, KDOT Project Engineer, said in a YouTube video.
KDOT Secretary Calvin Reed said the motivation behind the project is to help ease confusion for drivers by creating a more effective way for drivers to proceed through the area.
“Everybody who goes through it knows that there are challenges with this interchange,” Reed said. “It’s not always obvious who gets to stop and who doesn’t get to stop, and obviously that impacts how quickly people can get through that interchange.”
The project was originally approved in August of 2022 by Kansas Governor Laura Kelly, following several near-fatal crashes and heavy traffic that raised concerns. After KDOT examined options, officials determined the best solution for the issues related to the interchange.
Parents of students, alumni and K-State fans are looking forward to this change, Carter Sawyer, junior in architectural engineering, said.
“My mom is [a] K-State alum and my dad loves to come back for games and bring his friends for tailgates, and he is always complaining about the traffic in that area of the trip, so I think this will make the trip at least a little shorter and more manageable,” Sawyer said. “As someone preparing to graduate, I look forward to coming back for reunions and celebrations, so I am excited to reap the benefits of this project, too.”
KDOT Public Information Officer Ashley Perez said that, after all options were compared, the most preferred option for the area was a flyover bridge.
“The flyover bridge will span over the existing bridge across I-70, and additional improvements are planned for the southbound to westbound I-70 entrance ramp,” Perez said. “The project will also update the north access point of the interchange and add a two-mile auxiliary lane on I-70, which will be eastbound only. The existing interchange, including the bridge, will remain open both during and after construction.”
Along with relieving safety concerns for drivers, this project will provide other benefits such as allowing drivers to maintain a consistent speed, providing improved driving conditions at the K-18/Boller Road intersection, reducing the number of lane closure occurrences during construction and more.
The first phase of construction is currently underway and is planned to continue until March of 2026, with no effect on I-70/K-18 traffic, but providing access to K-19 from Bollar Road, which was closed earlier this month.
Once the second phase begins, one lane of traffic will be rerouted through the construction zone at reduced speed while the flyover is constructed. The project will be fully completed in the fall of 2027.
