Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Around the Block

Kansas City Will Take a Serious Look at Removing Downtown Highway

11:22 AM EST on February 17, 2017

The days might be numbered for this section of downtown highway in Kansas City. Image:

Rochester just wrapped up the conversion of part of its Inner Loop highway into a surface street, another highway removal is underway in New Haven, and freeway teardowns are in play in many other American cities.

Now you can add Kansas City to the list of places getting serious about removing a grade-separated highway to save money, improve walkability, and open up downtown land for development.

This rendering shows how the street grid could be stitched back together. Image: Urban Land Institute Kansas City
Without the highway, the street grid can be stitched back together. Image: Urban Land Institute Kansas City

Eric Bunch at BikeWalkKC says the regional planning agency for the two Kansas Cities (Missouri and Kansas) is studying the removal of a section of I-70:

The study will propose several potential alternatives for the future of the Buck O’Neil (formerly the Broadway Bridge), the north leg of the Downtown KCMO freeway loop, and the elevated I-70 lanes into Downtown KCK.

Consultants for the project will likely evaluate the feasibility of tearing down the I-70 lanes between Columbus Park (KCMO) and Downtown KCK, setting Kansas City up to join the growing national trend of urban freeway removal.

Freeways once brought connectivity and convenient shipment of goods into urban centers and they made travel by car easier. But they also brought poor air quality noise pollution to densely populated areas. But even more, they proved to be extremely destructive to the communities they pass through, scarring historic neighborhoods and cutting off connectivity for residents.

If the complete removal of this section of I-70 proves to be feasible, the opportunities for catalytic, legacy projects abound.

  • Improved Walkability: The street grid between Downtown Columbus Park and River Market could be restored.
  • Development Potential: The trench that carries the north loop lanes contains hundreds of acres of prime downtown real estate that could be redeveloped into pedestrian/bike friendly uses.
  • Catalytic Trail Project: Imagine reusing the elevated lanes between the River Market and Downtown KCK as an elevated bicycle and pedestrian trail. Look at the impact of The Big Four Bridge in Louisville, KY.

More recommended reading: Bike Portland reports that local officials are using emergency measures to curb speeding on a dangerous road. And Daniel Kay Hertz points out that, contrary to popular perception, a lot of kids live in Chicago.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Wednesday’s Headlines Ask How Much a Life Is Worth

There isn't much of a financial penalty for drivers who kill pedestrians — even if those drivers are cops.

September 27, 2023

‘I’m Not Grieving Alone’: New Play Explores a Father’s Journey After Losing Two Children to Traffic Violence

Colin Campbell and his wife Gail Lerner lost both their children in a car crash with impaired driver. A new play explores how to talk about similar tragedies.

September 27, 2023

How Transit Saved Lives — And Became a Lifeline — During and After the Maui Fires

A Maui bus agency helped transport 42,000 people off the island in the wake of one of the most devastating fires in American history — and highlighted the critical role that shared modes can play not just in preventing climate-related disasters, but saving lives when they happen.

September 27, 2023

California Has to Stop Building Freeways. Now.

"People aren't used to thinking of freeways as fossil fuel infrastructure, but they are." And once built, there's no going back, no making up for the extra driving by trying to convince people that a bus or train might be a better choice - we're stuck with it.

September 26, 2023

Streetfilms Tours Emeryville, Calif., the Little City that Can

Did somebody say "encore?" Safe streets rock star John Bauters, Mayor of Emeryville, population less-than 13,000, gave Streetfilms producer Clarence Eckerson a tour of his city.

September 26, 2023
See all posts