The Gibbs Road Bridge demolition project on I-635 has resulted in some lane and ramp closures, according to the Kansas Department of Transportation.
All northbound and southbound I-635 lane clsoures will take place between Speaker Road on the north end to Merriam Lane on the south end, in Kansas City, Kan., a KDOT spokesman said.
Bridge demolition will be handled through a series of steps, KDOT said. First crews will use a piece of equipment called a breaker to break up the sections of the bridge deck that are not over the actual traffic lanes during daytime hours this week.
Next, they will saw and then remove pieces of the bridge (via a backhoe and dump truck operation) that would normally be over traffic during the overnight hours this week.
Then early next week, crews will remove the bridge girders via a crane operation during the overnight hours with short-rolling roadblocks for I-635 traffic. This work is all contingent on weather, and schedules may be changed.
Lane closure schedule:
Tuesday, May 6:
8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Southbound I-635 will be reduced to two open lanes
9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Northbound I-635 will be reduced to two open lanes
7 p.m.-9 p.m. Northbound and southbound I-635 will be reduced to two open lanes
9 p.m.-5 a.m. (Wednesday, May 7) Northbound and southbound I-635 will be reduced to one open lane
Wednesday, May 7
7 p.m.-9 p.m. Northbound and southbound I-635 will be reduced to two open lanes
9 p.m.-5 a.m. (Thursday, May 8) Northbound and southbound I-635 will be reduced to one open lane
Thursday, May 8
7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Northbound and southbound I-635 will be reduced to two open lanes
9 p.m. to 5 a.m. (Friday, May 9) Northbound and southbound I-635 will be reduced to one open lane
Friday, May 9
9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Northbound I-635 will be reduced to two open lanes
Monday, May 12
7 p.m.-9 p.m. Northbound and southbound I-635 will be reduced to two open lanes
9 p.m. to 5 a.m. (Tuesday, May 13) Northbound and southbound I-635 will be reduced to one open lane
Ramps from eastbound and westbound I-70 to I-635 and from K-32 to southbound I-635 will be closed. Traffic will follow a marked detour via to 18th Street Expressway.
There will be rolling roadblocks for southbound I-635 traffic throughout the overnight hours to allow for the removal of bridge girders.
Tuesday, May 13
7 p.m.-9 p.m. Northbound and southbound I-635 will be reduced to two open lanes
9 p.m.-5 a.m. (Wednesday, May 14) Northbound and southbound I-635 will be reduced to one open lane
Ramps from northbound and southbound I-35 to I-635 will be closed. Traffic will detour via I-35 to 18th Street Expressway to I-70.
There will be rolling roadblocks for northbound I-635 traffic throughout the overnight hours to allow for the removal of bridge girders.
Updated daily traffic information for this project and for the entire Kansas City metro area can be viewed online at www.ksdot.org/kcmetro/laneclose.asp.
The Kansas Department of Transportation urges all motorists to be alert, obey the warning signs, and slow down when approaching and driving through the project work zone. The scheduled completion date for the entire project is early September 2014, weather permitting.