Kansas City Transit Activist Hate For Highways Ramps Up Amid Coronavirus

We may disagree with the policy angle of this post BUT we RESPECT the perspective on local history and documentation of how downtown evolved over the years . . . Mostly for the worst.

Read more:

How 80 Years of Land Use and Transportation Policy Slowly Strangled a Neighborhood - Urban Angle

This summer, Kansas City initiated a study to evaluate the lowering of Route 9 to street grade between Interstate 70 and the Heart of America Bridge where it separates the River Market and Columbus Park neighborhoods.

Comments

  1. How many of these "grand plans" are just pie-in-the-sky? Never will they ever do anything like this. It's too expensive and....well, it's just too expensive.

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  2. "Kansas City Transit Activist Hate For Highways Ramps Up Amid Coronavirus"

    Why so much hate for highways ramps? How else are we to get on and off the highways?

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  3. Wall E. Weasel9/16/20, 11:11 PM

    A very interesting, if somewhat depressing, writeup of the area's history. I vaguely remember some of what is described but at this point it sure feels like what's there now has been there forever.

    One problem I do see. They are basing their traffic usage on normal, everyday traffic patterns. Anyone who drives in or out of downtown knows that changes in a hurry. One bridge closure, a traffic accident, construction, anything that disrupts flow always changes the vehicle count on 9 and the North section of the loop within an hour. If it already gets overloaded in its current configuration how would it handle things as they propose?

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  4. THat looks like an article i am not interested in reading. There shouldn't be any cars that are driving THROUGH kansas city near the downtown loop. going east on I 70 they can take the bypass exit in LAwrence that takes them South of I435 on widened state highways. They can be nudged with tolls if they think going around around the abysmally planned downtown loop is a good idea b/c they aren't going to stop to visit downtown. I don't recall federal and state government being very timid about imminent domain. something similar can be done for 1-35 and 71 hwy. Get to it mofos. Where are the assholes on 71 coming from and going to?

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  5. i35 going North, then taking the first 1 lane exit that has to criss cross i-70 traffic flow to continue to exit left while i-70 E comes from left and exits right is ridiculous. And the whole area is like that.

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  6. But noooo, the only seemingly sane state legislature i have heard of is Rep. Peter Merideth that objects to tax dollars and immminent domain being used on a 'hyperloop'. Faster does not mean better nor does being sucked through a tube like a check put in someone else's bank sound like a fun process. How much did that project want tax money for of the 300-500 million for a 15 mile test track and claim that the whole route would cost from KC to st louis would be 10.4 billion! HA!

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  7. once u y'all put in the negotiated the P&L district and airport etc, the vultures be like the sukers in Missouri!

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  8. interesting article--thanks for posting, Tony.

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  9. everybody hates the downtown freeway loop now, but please remember it was the New Hot Fad at one time, and today's planners are chasing fads just as stupid.

    changing 9 in this way will still be a busy busy road between columbus park and river market. so that will still work a disconnection and it is foolish to pretend it won't. also, columbus park is still choked off from the surroundings by other freeways and that won't change. this is the "seam not a barrier" concept mentioned in the article.

    but more than anything i am opposed to letting this generation of planners and MARCers and consultants and community development consultants and non-profit hustlers and nitwits get their hands on a couple hundred acres of new streetscapes out of the project to waste money on and put huge curbs and narrow the roads to make them dangerous for those who roll on them like bikes wheelchairs and strollers, i.e. the 'complete streets' fad.

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  10. How about a moratorium on new civic construction projects in KC? How about that?

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