Where: I-35 between Route 152 and Pleasant Valley Road
What: New overpass
Who: MoDOT, Liberty School District, and the cities of Kansas City, Liberty, and Pleasant Valley

Background:
The Shoal Creek area of KCMO is experiencing rapid growth, especially with the development of the Shoal Creek Valley master-planned community.  This part of the city is in the Liberty School district, with all secondary schools on the east side of I-35 in the city of Liberty.  The main route across the highway (Route 152/Barry Road/Kansas Street) is badly congested due to poorly planned strip mall development.

The communities want to build a new overpass to connect the two sides of the highway and provide safe access from the west to the South Valley middle and junior high schools.  A first phase is proposed with a two lane road and a paved bike/ped trail, to be completed by 2011.  Striped bike lanes have been considered but it is not clear if they will be built.  A second phase would expand the road to four lanes plus the bike/ped path, with the timing dependent of funding.

Bike/Ped considerations:
There is a huge need for a safe bike/ped access across I-35 in this area.  The overpass would connect rapidly growing residential areas with schools and expanding retail developments. One of the main concerns raised by the community is the need for safe school bus crossing over the highway, and this also holds true for Safe Routes to School issues for bicyclists and pedestrians.

It is unclear at this time if the government agencies involved would include the project’s bike/ped components in the regular budget, or if they would seek to pay for it with Transportation Enhancements grants.

Related Information:
MoDOT’s Flintlock Overpass project web site