I’ve never been to France, but it’s no big deal: a little bit of France is coming to Blue Springs next year.
I’m talking about that nifty diverging diamond interchange at Woods Chapel Road and Interstate 70, the area that was recently described as having “loosely-spaced intersections, weaving traffic patterns, and a lack of storage capacity …”
That’ll change in the near future. This week the Missouri Department of Transportation and the city approved TranSystems’ designs for a project that everyone appears to be excited about.
City staff call it DDI.
“Yes, DDI,” Oliver DeGrate, director of the Blue Springs Public Works, said this week. “We’re making some progress on it.”
DeGrate calls it an “efficient way” of moving traffic. And, you know, he should know. A worldwide traveler, DeGrate has come into contact with this kind of design before while traveling overseas. The concept began in France, he said, and he’s experienced it while taking public transportation.
DDI is neat because it diverges, or switches, traffic to the opposite side of the road before traveling over an overpass or under an underpass.
The first DDI opened last year in Springfield, and this one will be the first of its kind in Kansas City.
Heck, I’m all for it, and I’m really looking forward to driving up to this thing for the first time with a car full of kids!
Here’s how TranSystem’s describes the overall project:
“The DDI and South Outer Road relocation are primary elements of an engineering solution that will provide the capacity upgrades and safety enhancements that the city was asked to deliver when the residents of Blue Springs approved a Council-backed bond issue, passed in August 2008. The city staff is thrilled with the project.”
Beth Wright, a district engineer with MoDOT, said in a statement issued this week that the DDI is a “practical solution” that will improve congestion issues and safety concerns.
DeGrate sad Wednesday that the city is contacting existing property owners near the site. Once those right-of-way acquisitions are made, intensive planning can begin.
“And then we’ll put it to bid,” he said.
It’s good news for city residents – and really good news for those people who live in that area. On Valley View Drive alone, there will be a road expansion, which will alleviate the congestion.
But, really, for me – I just like saying DDI.
