South Lawrence Trafficway on track for fall opening

photo by: Nick Krug

The east leg of the South Lawrence Trafficway, left, is shown on Tuesday, June 21, 2016. The highway, which runs parallel to 31st Street, remains under construction and is expected to open this fall.

The east leg of the South Lawrence Trafficway is still on track to be completed and opened this fall, a Kansas Department of Transportation spokeswoman said Friday.

Work on the project — six miles of highway connecting the east leg of Kansas Highway 10 from U.S. 59 — started in November 2013 after nearly two decades of litigation and protests. Kim Qualls, a spokeswoman for the Kansas Department of Transportation northeast district, has previously told the Journal-World the project would open in November. She said Friday that estimate was still accurate.

After environmentalists and Native American groups vigorously opposed construction of the road through the Baker Wetlands, an agreement was decided on to mitigate effects to the area. As part of that agreement, KDOT recently installed walls to minimize freeway noise.

The walls were put up between the South Lawrence Trafficway and the wetlands near the intersection of 31st and Louisiana streets. One was installed along the same stretch between the freeway and 31st Street.

On Thursday, KDOT finished some work ahead of schedule on a new traffic bridge over K-10 that will connect East 1750 Road and Noria Road on the east edge of Lawrence. The bridge is a component of the SLT project.