Missouri DOT to kick off 6 year project to expand 200 miles of I-70 to six lanes
The Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) is beginning a years-long project to expand I-70 by building additional lanes along nearly 200 miles of the interstate.
Missouri’s Improve I-70 Program calls for the construction of a new lane in both directions of 200 miles of I-70 from Blue Springs to Wentzville, bringing the interstate from four lanes to six.
Aside from adding a lane to I-70, other goals of the Improve I-70 project include:
- Improve the interstate while modernizing the existing pavement and bridges
- Increase the efficiency of freight movements along I-70
- Minimize construction impacts with a focus on work zone safety, communication, and construction staging
- Expand a diverse workforce through the creation of jobs
The project will be broken up into six segments, with the first kicking off in July 2024 with an anticipated completion in late 2027. During this first portion of the project, crews will add an additional lane to I-70 in each direction between U.S. Route 63 in Columbia and Route 54 in Kingdom City.
The second segment of the project will add a new lane on I-70 from Warrenton to Wentzville (I-64). Work on this project could begin by spring 2025.
The third segment will take place on I-70 from Blue Springs to Odessa. The contract is scheduled to be awarded in 2025, and work could be complete by 2028.
Other project segments include Kingdom City to Warrenton, Odessa to Marshall, and Marshall to Columbia, but there are no dates listed for the estimated beginnings or completions of these projects.
Officials say that the full I-70 corridor expansion project should be completed by late 2030.
At a June 13 groundbreaking ceremony held in Columbia, Missouri Governor Mike Parson said, “I-70 is one of Missouri’s oldest and most vital corridors. The safety and economic prosperity of Missourians depend on an interstate that grows along with the state and nation. Expanding I-70 to six lanes has been talked about in Jefferson City for decades, but our administration, in working with Senator Lincoln Hough and the General Assembly, is taking action and getting it done. We could not be more proud that the work we’re commemorating here today will continue serving Missourians for generations to come.”