Ribbon-Cutting Marks Successful Completion of Interchange at K-7 and Johnson Drive/55th Street

What can we say! It was a beautiful day for a celebration as dignitaries officially cut the ribbon signaling the successful completion of the new interchange at K-7 and Johnson Drive/55th Street in Shawnee, Kansas. Shawnee’s Mill Valley High School Marching Band created a festive air for the perfect fall day, while a gaggle of 5th graders from nearby Prairie Ridge Elementary School clapped and cheered.

Kansas Governor Sam Brownback described the project as “wonderful” and proclaimed that “it provides an atmosphere for growth.” Kansas Secretary of Transportation Deb Miller agreed, saying “There’s nothing I enjoy quite as much as the opportunity to celebrate a success, and that’s certainly what this is.”

Other speakers included U.S. Senator Pat Roberts, U.S. Congressman Kevin Yoder, Kansas Secretary of Revenue Nick Jordan, and Shawnee Mayor Jeff Meyers. All praised the work that had been done and its exciting implications for economic growth in Shawnee, Johnson County, and all along the K-7 corridor. 

Many members of the GBA project team turned out to celebrate a job well done! Principal Clarence Munsch and Project Manager Todd Jones took to the stage for a second ribbon-cutting ceremony recognizing the firm’s engineering design of the $21.4 million project.

Safety concerns and capacity issues prompted KDOT to initiate the project, which replaced an at-grade signalized intersection with the new interchange. The project included new bridges on K-7 over Johnson Drive/55th Street as well as a much-talked-about roundabout below the bridges, where K-7 on- and off-ramps merge with Johnson Drive/55th

Street. A second roundabout west of K-7 at the intersection of 55th Street with Hedge Lane Terrace was also part of the project. Two related projects are still under construction.

According to Governor Brownback, “The investment here and along the K-7 corridor …will provide important economic return and job creation for the region and state. But the return…won’t just be in dollars and jobs; the improved roads also will be measured in fewer crashes fewer injuries, and fewer fatalities.”

Congratulations to all involved in this very important project!