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13 February 2023
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — If you are driving south into Wichita on Interstate 135 this Saturday, Feb. 18, you may have to take a detour.
The Kansas Department of Transportation plans to close the southbound lanes of I-135 from 7 a.m. until 6 p.m. at the North Junction construction site. Road crews need the lanes to be closed as they construct a bridge over the travel lanes.
During the closure, southbound drivers on I-135 will be detoured onto southbound Interstate 235, then to Broadway Avenue.
At the end of the exit ramp to Broadway, drivers will have to take a right turn and then another right turn to get onto the entrance ramp to northbound I-235. As soon as drivers are on I-235, they will need to take the southbound I-135 exit to continue in the original direction.
Other KDOT projects affecting Wichita traffic
Tuesday, Feb. 14 — The northbound I-135 exit to eastbound Kansas Highway 254 will be closed from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. for bridge work over the ramp.
Tuesday, Feb. 14 — The Hydraulic entrance ramp to northbound I-135 will close from approximately 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. as a barrier wall is installed on the ramp.
Wednesday, Feb. 15 — Workers will install a barrier wall at the bottom of the westbound Kansas Highway 96 ramp to southbound I-135 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The ramp will remain open, and the right lane of southbound I-135 will be used as the acceleration lane for ramp traffic. Southbound I-135 traffic going into the area will be reduced from three lanes to two lanes for a short distance.
Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday — This project is not connected to the North Junction project. If the weather is good, the right lane of westbound K-96 between Greenwich and Webb will close for pavement patching between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.
The North Junction construction project is in what KDOT calls the Gold Project Phase 2A and 2B. The work began in April 2021. The three-year project will replace the I-135 ramps to southbound I-235 and westbound K-96.
To get the latest updates on the North Junction construction, click here. To see the fact sheet about the long-term project, click here.