Part of Buck O’Neil Bridge is closing next week. Here’s how it will affect KC traffic

Robert A. Cronkleton
Missouri Department of Transportation's Kansas City District

Drivers will need to find a new way to get over the Missouri River next week if they’re coming from Kansas City’s Northland and normally take the Buck O’Neil Bridge in the northwest corner of Kansas City’s downtown.

The southbound lanes of U.S. 169 highway will close from the Wheeler Downtown Airport to Fifth Street no later than rush hour on Monday morning, said Lairyn McGregor, a spokeswoman for the Missouri Department of Transportation’s Kansas City District.

The closing, which is scheduled to last until fall of 2024, is expected to have a significant impact on traffic as the route is a popular crossing over the Missouri River for those headed from the Northland to downtown Kansas City and areas to the south.

Crews are closing that part of the highway for more than 600 days for the construction of the new U.S. 169/Buck O’Neil Bridge just to the west of the existing bridge. Crews will tie the new southbound bridge into the new flyover ramps to Interstate 35.

Drivers can expect to see various lane closings beginning overnight Saturday so that crews can put in place the traffic controls for the work.

Here’s what drivers can also expect:

  • Northbound lanes over the Buck O’Neil bridge will remain open at this time.

  • Southbound U.S. 169 will be detoured to the Bond Bridge, which carries Interstates 29 and 35 over the Missouri River, on the northeast side of downtown Kansas City.

  • Southbound U.S. 169 south of Missouri 9 highway will be open only so that people can access the Downtown Airport.

  • At 9 a.m. Tuesday, crews will close the ramp from northbound U.S. 169 to Richards Road to set up a temporary barrier. The ramp will reopen by 3 p.m.

  • Crews will close Richards Road at the Harlem Roundabout to Lou Holland Drive on Thursday for bridge construction. It is expected to reopen in August.

In March, crews will close the ramp from westbound Interstate 70 to southbound I-35 and the ramp from Fifth Street to southbound I-35. The ramps will remain closed until December.

The existing bridge, formerly known as the Broadway Bridge, opened in 1956 and is a key connection to communities north of the Missouri River. It has nearing the end of its projected lifespan. About 50,000 vehicles use the bridge each day.

The $200 million replacement bridge is expected to be completed in December 2024.

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