photo by: KDOT

The map shows closures planned for a portion of Wakarusa Drive in 2026.

Motorists who use the portion of Wakarusa Drive between Clinton Parkway and the South Lawrence Trafficway will face several months-worth of obstacles, beginning next week.

On Wednesday, through traffic on the stretch of Wakarusa Drive will end and likely won’t be fully restored for at least six months as crews move into a new phase of work to expand the adjacent South Lawrence Trafficway.

The first closure will shut down all traffic on the portion of Wakarusa Drive immediately south of the Clinton Parkway intersection to a point just north of the driveway entrance to the Miller Mart convenience store. That closure is expected to last for 45 days. During the closure, patrons will be able to access the Miller Mart business if they approach it from the south on Wakarusa Drive.

Upon reopening of that stretch of Wakarusa, crews will close the portion of Wakarusa immediately south of the Miller Mart Driveway to the intersection of Stoneback Drive. That closure is expected to last for 45 days. During the closure, patrons will be able to access the Miller Mart business if they approach it from the north on Wakarusa Drive.

When that section of Wakarusa reopens, crews then will close Wakarusa Drive between Stonegate Drive and 27th Street for a period of 90 days. That is the section of the street that is closest to the South Lawrence Trafficway, which is being expanded to four lanes and will include a new interchange where the bypass intersects with Wakarusa Drive.

The closures are being managed by the Kansas Department of Transportation, which is overseeing the SLT expansion project. The $171 million project will expand the bypass from two lanes to four lanes with a median from Iowa Street in southern Lawrence to the Kansas Turnpike in northwest Lawrence.

The entire project is scheduled to be completed in late 2028.