|
Routes, interchanges and/or intersections:
|
This project will connect the “bridge with no exists” over I-49, Rockhaven Road and Peculiar Drive to I-49 and create a bridge “with no exists” to the Rockhaven Rd/Peculiar Dr & I-49 interchange. This interchange bridge is a planned as a two-lane major collector street(s) that runs north/south, providing access to the regional highway system of the I-49 interchange. Currently, the “bridge with no exists” over I-49, Rockhaven Rd and Peculiar Dr are “rural” county roads. The City’s 2002 Comprehensive Plan identified the Rockhaven Rd/Peculiar Dr & I-49 interchange as a secondary transportation priority. Harrisonville’s 2022 Comprehensive Plan will identify the Rockhaven Rd/Peculiar Dr & I-49 interchange as an important capital improvement, currently serving the existing northern business district north of the city limits of Harrisonville. With the I-49/M291 interchange completed, the Rockhaven Rd/Peculiar Dr & I-49 interchange is one of the City’s top transportation priorities. This project will be the next step following the Harrisonville’s 2022 Comprehensive Plan, which will develop interchange alignment options the City is pursuing with this project.
|
|
Project Description: |
This new I-49/US 71 and Rockhaven Road Interchange project in Cass County, MO is a critical component of Harrisonville’s future growth and development. As you may recall, with the successful completion of the I-49/US 71 and Missouri Highway State Route 291 Interchange project in Cass County, MO that has been in-service since October 2012, the City of Harrisonville is again planning for the next phase of the project area, the I-49/US 71, and Rockhaven Road Interchange. Initially, the recently completed interchange (I-49/US 71 and MO Hwy State Route 291 Interchange) was necessary to provide the residents and business with another connection between Harrisonville’s business corridor along Commercial St, Rockhaven Rd and M291 to the interstate. By having the connection (I-49/US 71 and MO Hwy State Route 291 Interchange) has provided residents and the business community with a secondary route between the historic downtown Cass County Square, Harrisonville public schools, City Parks, future commercial development, and their homes. With the previous access to I-49/US 71, traffic was far too congested during peak hours to provide for safe and efficient movement of traffic. Over the long term, the I-49/US 71 and Rockhaven Rd Interchange can possibly be extended and included as part of an outer-ring interstate route connecting I-70 near Blue Springs, MO to the east with the Gardner, KS multi-modal facility to the west. Doing so would provide benefits region-wide, and further facilitate the development of the greater Kansas City area as a premier transportation hub for the entire country.
City and County officials believed that the construction of the I-49/US 71 and MO Hwy State Route 291 Interchange was the essential first step in the establishment of another connection to the interstate and the I-49/US 71 and Rockhaven Rd Interchange will be another east-west arterial corridor through the central portion of Cass County, now City and County officials are preparing for the possible extensions and future connectivity into the suburban areas within Kansas.
The improvements of the new I-49/US 71 and Rockhaven Rd Interchange will better serve the traffic flow generated by the Cass Regional Medical Center located along Rockhaven Rd approximately one (1) mile south of the proposed interchange within the northern portions of the City of Harrisonville, as well as the surrounding County lands, associated with the continued growth and development along the entire length of the Interstate 49/U.S. Highway 71 corridor within Cass County. The proposed I-49/US 71 and Rockhaven Road Interchange project will also provide significant relief to Harrisonville’s three (3) other existing interchanges currently serving the City of Harrisonville, by reducing the traffic congestion and improving the overall safety within these existing interchange
|
|
Scope: |
After carefully considering several alternate solutions for interchange layout, the consultant team - in coordination with the core team - recommend a traditional diamond interchange meeting the design standards for the functional classification for Interstate. The ramp terminals should have a distance of 700 ft between equally split Nom centerline of Route 71. We further recommend that roundabouts be used on both east and west ramp terminal locations. The roundabouts should be designed for two lanes, but for purposes of this project, only a single lane will be built at this time which is sufficient for the projected traffic without the 291 Bypass. We also recommend that the outer roads be realigned to accommodate the ramps, but also to be terminated within the roundabout circle.
Regarding the bridge, our recommendation is to use a new bridge on an offset alignment due to the equivalency of the cost of a redecked bridge. The existing deck had too much repair work to be seriously considered as an option after developing the cost estimate. Two types of new bridges are close to the same cost as a redecked bridge. One is a 4-span with concrete girders and 2:1 spill slopes, the other a 2-span with concrete girders using MSE walls. The advantage to using the 2-span bridge with MSE walls is the shorter length (258 ft for 4-span, 1 85 ft for 2span). A shorter bridge allows the roundabout to be set in closer and will save some right of way. Another advantage to a new bridge is in regard to saving road user costs. With respect to traffic handling during construction, a detour is available using the bridge at Peculiar which is several miles north of this location. However due to the length of the detour as well as inconvenience to the 1 500 people using this crossing every day, we recommend a new bridge be built on an offset alignment while the existing bridge is handling traffic.
Traffic: Actual traffic counts were taken during the week of May 4-8, 2009. A traffic study report is attached as Appendix A. Research conducted by Crawford, Bunte, Brammeier, Inc. (CBB) identified a Comprehensive Transportation Plan by the City of Harrisonville which showed a future street connection linking Route 291 and Rockhaven Road Interchange (291 Bypass). Potential traffic from the future development of the City was factored into the traffic study report.
Geotechnical: A desktop geotechnical report was provided by Terracon, Inc., and is located in
Appendix B. Existing geotechnical information was collected from various sources including MoDOT as-built plans and USDA Soil Conservation Service. The project is located in the southeast quarter of Section 36, Township 45 North, Range 32 West in Cass County, Missouri. A general overview of the anticipated subsurface soil and bedrock conditions that could be present at this site are explained in the report attached.
Survey: This project will rely on a conventional field survey since no previous aerial photogrammetry was available. At this time, Bartlett & Wests completed survey data consists of control based on tower technology, original alignment and existing right of way. A modification factor was applied to arrive at the coordinate system preferred by MoDOT. The survey was checked against two USGS monuments in the area.
|
