KANSAS CITY, Mo. — As if you didn’t have to deal with enough road construction downtown, Friday morning is the last time you can drive on the 12th Street Bridge for quite a while.
Road crews will begin tearing it down at 10 p.m. on Friday night and its closure will make it tough for those who want to drive down to the West Bottoms. 12th Street is the main road to the West Bottoms, and with the bridge closed through September, drivers will have to find other ways to get down there over the next two months.
MoDOT officials said the bridge is so run down, it needs to be replaced for the safety of all drivers.
Keep in mind the west side of the downtown loop will be closed all weekend long as they tear down the 12th Street Bridge and remove the debris. As they rebuild it, the 12th Street ramps on I-35 will also be closed.
Business owners in the West Bottoms are upset since it will hurt business for the next two months, but the bridge should be built in time for the busy Halloween season, when thousands go to the West Bottoms to visit the haunted houses.
Besides downtown, there is another bridge replacement project set to begin in Lee’s Summit.
Starting at 10 p.m. on Friday night, road crews will be shutting down the east and westbound lanes of U.S. 50 Highway at Interstate-470 for bridge deck maintenance. Detours will be posted.
Both lanes of I-470 will be open, but delays are expected. The shutdown only affects U.S. 50.
Starting next week, traffic in that area will be extremely slow as they squeeze motorists heading both directions on I-470 over the eastbound bridge.