VIDEO: Noland Road Bridge open

The traffic congestion caused by the re-building of the Noland Road bridge over Interstate 70 is officially over.

A ribbon cutting ceremony Thursday to commemorate the nearly $10 million project – completed 37 days ahead of schedule – was a relief for travelers.

“The new bridge is wonderful,” says Greenwood resident Jean Haggerty. Greenwood is south of Lee’s Summit. Haggerty uses the bridge daily. “My son is a student at Developing Potential here in Independence. I take it four times a day. It has made life much easier.”

Built in 1965, the Noland Road Bridge was deteriorating, with chunks of concrete falling periodically due to the heavy volume of 28,000 vehicles per day traveling on one of the main north-south arteries of Independence. State Transportation officials believe the collaborative efforts of Independence residents, business owners and city officials all came together to significantly reduce the closure time and restore the vital link.

“The reason we are here is because we had a bad bridge,” said Chris Redline, assistant district engineer for the Missouri Department of Transportation. “We could have not done it without the Chamber (of Commerce), the citizens or the business community. This was a true partnership.”

Redline said MoDOT closed the bridge Feb. 16 and re-opened it to traffic 57 days later. What once was an estimated $30 million dollar project came in just over $9.3 million, Redline said, adding available funds were used for other MoDOT projects.

“We had countdown clocks on the Interstate that people thought were pretty neat,” Redline said. “We had never done that before.”

Karen Downey of the Independence Chamber of Commerce read a statement from Chamber President Rick Hemmingsen, who was unable to attend the ceremony because he is out on medical leave. Downey said the bridge replacement project was Hemmingsen’s “baby” and that he  worked relentlessly to make sure businesses along Noland Road affected by the three-month closing of the bridge and its related detours were kept abreast of the project’s development throughout the process.

Kathryn Kocan, owner of Bubbles Wine and Spirits, had worries early on in the process about the replacement work affecting business.

“I’m glad it’s done,” Kocan said. “I’m glad they opened it early. It helps a lot. It’s been business as usual. Now, if we could do something about the economy.”