History
Plans for a freeway linking southeast Kansas City to Independence were first published in 1955 in a document titled General Location of National System of Interstate Highways Including All Additional Routes at Urban Areas. The first portions of the highway that were signed I-470 were established in 1970, between I-70 and US 40 in Independence. The north-south portion of the highway, then designated US 71 Bypass had been in existence since 1970 and was renumbered to Route 291 between 1970 and 1971. Between 1979 and 1980, the portion of the freeway between the Grandview Triangle and the Exit 7 cloverleaf had been completed. US 50's alignment was changed to follow I-470 west to the Grandview Triangle, and the old routing of US 50 was renumbered Route 350. The section of freeway between US 50 and Route 291 was opened to traffic in 1983, completing the route. Between 1980 and 1983, the portion of the route that is concurrent with Route 291 was upgraded to freeway standards and included in the I-470 loop.
Since construction of the highway, three interchanges have been added or expanded. The first addition was an interchange with View High Drive, which was constructed in early 1993 costing about $2 million to complete. The second was an addition to the existing cloverleaf at US 50 in Lee's Summit, adding access roads to Pryor Road and Northwest Blue Parkway. Construction on that interchange began in July 2007, and was completed by September 2008. The third interchange, with Strother Road was first planned to be constructed in 2008. The road served to provide access to the industrial park west of the freeway, and to spur new development on land pending sale by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to the east of the freeway. The interchange was opened to traffic in August 2010 at a final construction cost of around $18 million.
In July 2010 MoDOT was forced to close the westbound lanes of I-470 near the Grandview Triangle due to large cracks forming in the roadway, which ultimately lead to the roadway collapsing. The eastbound lanes were not cracked, and thus were not closed. The collapse was caused by a buildup of ground water underneath the westbound lanes, which eventually caused a landslide. The affected area was replaced by a bridge extension that opened in the following month.
Read more about this topic: Interstate 470 (Missouri)
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