By Emily Randall
Northeast News
Oct. 6, 2010

The Christopher S. Bond Bridge opened to its first drivers headed north over the Missouri River this past week.

One northbound lane from the Front Street on-ramp is currently in use over the unique cable-stay bridge. Laura Wagner, kcICON public information officer, also confirmed this past week that by Oct. 31, the two additional northbound lanes would open to traffic over the bridge, as well, and all northbound traffic from points south of the Bond Bridge would be going over the new bridge.

Sen. Kit Bond — the bridge’s namesake — and Kevin Keith, interim director of the Missouri Department of Transportation, also announced Sept. 27 that all the Interstate 29/35 lanes and ramps on the 4.7-mile kcICON project from the northeast side of downtown to just north of Armour Road in North Kansas City will be open by the end of the year, with the new bridge fully operational. This milestone is expected to come six months ahead of schedule.

Wagner said there is still considerable work to be done to reach the completion of all the highway ramps and lanes. This past week, crews began laying asphalt in the southbound lanes on the Bond Bridge. There is also significant work to come at the Armour Road/Highway 210 interchange. There are five ramps at that location — only one of which is fully open at this time.

In 2011, crews will complete cross street work — including the considerable reconfiguration of Front Street. This reconfiguration will mean the elimination of the Front Street loop under the highway adjacent to the Isle of Capri Casino. Instead, Front Street will run straight under the interstate toward Riverfront Park in an east-west direction.

Crews will also work on removing the old Paseo Bridge next year. MoDOT has not yet announced a schedule for the deconstruction of the Paseo Bridge, however, the entire $245 million kcICON project is contracted to be complete by fall 2011.

In other interstate-related news, the on-ramp onto northbound Interstate 35 from 12th Street on the west side of the downtown loop closed Monday morning for retaining wall repairs. The ramp will remain closed through Oct. 31.