Interstate 70 in Kansas

In the U.S. state of Kansas, Interstate 70 (I-70) contains the first segment to start being paved and to be completed in the Interstate Highway System. It extends from the Colorado border near the town of Kanorado to the Missouri border in Kansas City. The route covers 424 miles (682 km) and passes through several of the state's principal cities in the process including Kansas City, Topeka, and Salina. The route also passes through the cities of Lawrence, Junction City, and Abilene.

Interstate 70
I-70 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by KDOT and KTA
Length	424.15 mi[1] (682.60 km)
Existed	1956–present
Major junctions
West end	I-70 / US 24 at Colorado state line
	I-135 / US-81 in Salina I-470 / US-75 near Topeka US-40 / K-4 / Kansas Turnpike / I-470 near Topeka I-435 in Kansas City I-635 in Kansas City I-670 in Kansas City
East end	I-70 / US 24 / US 40 / US 169 at Missouri state line
Location
Counties	Sherman, Thomas, Logan, Gove, Trego, Ellis, Russell, Ellsworth, Lincoln, Saline, Dickinson, Geary, Riley, Wabaunsee, Shawnee, Douglas, Leavenworth, Wyandotte
Highway system
Interstate Highway System Main Auxiliary Suffixed Business Future Kansas State Highway System Interstate U.S. State Spurs ← US-69 → K-71

Route description

Interstate 70 in Kansas, Exit 1, Kanorado

I-70 is concurrent with US-24 from the Colorado state line until US-24 splits at Levant and runs north of I-70. At Colby, I-70 begins to turn southeast until it reaches Oakley, where US-40 joins with I-70 for a concurrent journey through most of the state. Initially, the route remains high and unusually level as it follows a projection of the High Plains into the state. From Exit 140 (Riga Road), the route lowers from the High Plains into the Blue Hills region, as indicated by gentle undulations in the road and the unusual appearance of stone posts in the countryside.[2] Approaching Russell, the route passes over three active sinkholes, the largest being the Crawford Sinkhole at Mile 179.[2] Past Russell, the route follows a ridge between the Smoky Hill River and its tributary, the Saline River where the highway passes through the Smoky Hills Wind Farm. Reaching the county line between Russell and Ellsworth counties, the road begins to traverse the Smoky Hills.

At Salina, Interstate 135 begins its journey southward toward Wichita, and I-70 continues through Abilene and Junction City, where the road begins to run through the Flint Hills.

In Topeka, I-70 intersects a child route, I-470, twice. The second time it is intersected, the Kansas Turnpike merges, making I-70 into a toll road. This is one of only two sections of I-70 that are tolled (the other is along the Pennsylvania Turnpike), with the maximum toll distance costing $3.50 as of 2018.[3] I-70 carries this designation from Topeka to Bonner Springs. It is the eastern terminus of the turnpike, and from there to 18th Street and extending on to the Kansas eastern border, the highway is free.

I-70 crossing on the Lewis & Clark Viaduct over the Kansas River from Kansas to Missouri in Kansas City, as seen from Quality Hill.

I-70 enters Missouri via a main northern route on the Lewis and Clark Viaduct above the confluence of the Kansas River and Missouri River and a route designated "Alternate I-70" which has signs for I-70 as well as Interstate 670 just south of Kansas City main downtown area.

Exit sign for exit 115 in Collyer. I-70 in Kansas is known for being unusually level.

I-70 enters Missouri via a main northern

From Exit 275 at Abilene to the Missouri state line, the road is named the Dwight D. Eisenhower-Harry S. Truman Presidential Highway. It retains the designation until Exit 16 in Missouri at Independence, the location of Truman's presidential library.

History

The section of I-70 that is now the Kansas Turnpike was finished by 1956 and opened to traffic.[4][5] West of Topeka, the freeway was constructed from Topeka west to Salina at its junction with U.S. Route 81, as well as from Ogallah to Grainfield.[6] From Salina, the freeway was completed through Wilson the next year. A segment of I-70 from Levant through Ogallah was finished by 1965.[7] Another section was built the following year connecting Wilson to Grainfield.[8] The freeway was completed through Kansas with a last section near the Colorado border in 1970.[9]

Exit list

Exit numbers correspond to the mileposts where they are located (numbered east from the Colorado border), except for those between Topeka and Kansas City, which are part of the Kansas Turnpike and use its mileposts (numbered nominally north from the Oklahoma border) instead.

County	Location	mi	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Kansas–Colorado line		0.000	0.000	I-70 / US 24 continue west into Colorado
Sherman	​	1.35	2.17	1	K-267 – Kanorado
	​	9.32	15.00	9	County Road 11
	​	12.27	19.75	12	County Road 14
	Goodland	17.27	27.79	17	US-24 Bus. east / K-27 – Sharon Springs, St. Francis
		19.25	30.98	19	US-24 Bus. west – Goodland
	​	27.22	43.81	27	K-253 – Edson
Thomas	​	36.34	58.48	36	K-184 – Brewster
	​	45.83	73.76	45	US-24 east – Levant	Eastern end of US-24 concurrency
	Colby	53.81	86.60	53	K-25 – Leoti, Atwood
	​	54.80	88.19	54	Country Club Drive
	​	62.73	100.95	62	County Road K
	​	70.01	112.67	70	US-83 – Oakley, Rexford
Logan	No major junctions
Gove	​	75.87	122.10	76	US-40 west – Oakley, Sharon Springs	Western end of US-40 concurrency
	​	79.80	128.43	79	Campus Road
	​	85.75	138.00	85	K-216 – Grinnell
	​	93.72	150.83	93	K-23 – Grainfield, Gove
	​	95.68	153.98	95	K-23 north – Grainfield, Hoxie	Grainfield only signed westbound; to K-23 north via unsigned K-23 Spur; southern terminus of unsigned K-23 Spur
	​	99.67	160.40	99	K-211 – Park
	Quinter	107.31	172.70	107	Castle Rock Road – Quinter	Former K-212
Trego	​	114.93	184.96	115	K-198 north – Collyer
	​	119.84	192.86	120	Voda Road
	WaKeeney	126.89	204.21	127	US-40 Bus. east / US-283 – WaKeeney, Ness City
		127.93	205.88	128	US-40 Bus. west to US-283 north – WaKeeney, Hill City
	​	135.11	217.44	135	K-147 – Ogallah
	​	140.23	225.68	140	Riga Road
Ellis	Ellis	145.29	233.82	145	K-247 – Ellis
	​	152.68	245.71	153	Yocemento Avenue
	Hays	156.80	252.35	157	US-183 Byp. – Hays, La Crosse
		159.00	255.89	159	US-183 – Hays, Stockton
	​	161.31	259.60	161	Commerce Parkway
	​	163.35	262.89	163	Toulon Avenue
	​	168.34	270.92	168	K-255 – Victoria
	​	172.56	277.71	172	Walker Avenue
Russell	​	175.56	282.54	175	176th Street – Gorham	Former K-257
	​	180.56	290.58	180	Balta Road
	Russell	184.54	296.99	184	US-281 – Russell, Hoisington	Former western terminus of US-40 Bus.
	​	188.56	303.46	189	Pioneer Road	Former eastern terminus of US-40 Bus.
	​	192.56	309.90	193	Bunker Hill Road
	Dorrance	199.09	320.40	199	Dorrance	Former K-231
Ellsworth	​	205.48	330.69	206	K-232 – Wilson, Lucas
	​	209.50	337.16	209	Sylvan Grove
	​	215.52	346.85	216	Vesper
	​	218.54	351.71	219	K-14 south – Ellsworth	West end of K-14 overlap
	​	221.44	356.37	221	K-14 north – Lincoln	East end of K-14 overlap
	​	224.87	361.89	225	K-156 – Ellsworth, Great Bend
Lincoln	​	232.96	374.91	233	Beverly, Carneiro
Saline	​	237.96	382.96	238	Brookville, Tescott
	​	243.97	392.63	244	Hedville, Culver
	​	248.99	400.71	249	Halstead Road
	​	250.24	402.72	250A-B	I-135 south / US-81 – Wichita, Concordia	Northern terminus of I-135, exits 95A-B; cloverleaf interchange.
	Salina	252.02	405.59	252	K-143 (Ninth Street)
	​	253.09	407.31	253	Ohio Street
	​	259.49	417.61	260	Niles Road
Dickinson	Solomon	265.94	427.99	266	Solomon Road	Former K-221
	​	272.00	437.74	272	Fair Road
	Abilene	274.54	441.83	275	K-15 – Abilene, Clay Center
	​	277.09	445.93	277	Jeep Road
	​	280.30	451.10	281	K-43 – Enterprise
	​	285.54	459.53	286	K-206 – Chapman
Geary	​	289.85	466.47	290	Milford Lake Road
	Junction City	294.34	473.69	295	US-77 / K-18 west – Marysville, Herington	West end of K-18 overlap
		295.92	476.24	296	US-40 Bus. east (Washington Street)
		297.29	478.44	298	East Street / Chestnut Street
	Grandview Plaza	298.28	480.04	299	Flinthills Boulevard (US-40 Bus. / K-57) / J Hill Road
		299.18	481.48	300	US-40 Bus. west / K-57 – Council Grove	No westbound entrance
	​	300.33	483.33	301	Fort Riley, Marshall Field
	​	302.28	486.47	303	K-18 east – Manhattan	East end of K-18 overlap
	​	303.42	488.31	304	Humboldt Creek Road
	​	306.87	493.86	307	McDowell Creek Road
	​	311.22	500.86	311	Moritz Road
	​	313.26	504.14	313	K-177 – Council Grove, Manhattan
Riley	​	315.44	507.65	316	Deep Creek Road
	​	317.61	511.14	318	Frontage Road
Wabaunsee	​	321.76	517.82	322	Tallgrass Road
	​	323.25	520.22	324	Wabaunsee Road
	​	326.73	525.82	328	K-99 – Wamego, Alma
	​	329.26	529.89	330	K-185 – McFarland
	​	331.19	533.00	332	Spring Creek Road
	​	332.18	534.59	333	K-138 – Paxico
	​	334.28	537.97	335	Snokomo Road
	​	337.24	542.74	338	Vera Road
	​	340.22	547.53	341	K-30 – Maple Hill
	​	341.23	549.16	342	Keene-Eskridge Road
	​	342.21	550.73	343	Ranch Road	Private interchange put in for Raymond Brethour for the Brethour Ranch. Later Brethour Ranch sold south side of road to Hudson's and it was a shared exit. The Exit was named "Ranch Road" after "the Tod Ranch" that later became the Brethour Ranch.
Shawnee	​	345.20	555.55	346	Carlson Road
	​	346.70	557.96	347	West Union Road
	​	349.22	562.02	350	Valencia Road
	​	350.24	563.66	351	Frontage Road	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
	​	352.26	566.91	353	K-4 west (Auburn Road)	West end of K-4 overlap
	Topeka	354.65	570.75	355	I-470 east / US-75 south – Topeka	West end of US-75 overlap; western terminus of I-470, exit 1A to 70 east westbound.
		355.24	571.70	356	Wanamaker Road
		356.38– 356.85	573.54– 574.29	357A	Fairlawn Road	Signed as exit 357 eastbound
				357B	Danbury Lane	Westbound exit only
		357.16– 357.54	574.79– 575.40	358A	US-75 north	East end of US-75 overlap; signed as exit 358 eastbound
				358B	Gage Boulevard	Signed as exit 358 eastbound
		358.56	577.05	359	MacVicar Avenue
		360.23– 360.94	579.73– 580.88	361A	1st Avenue	Provides access to Topeka Boulevard; eastbound exit and westbound entrance
				361B	3rd Street / Monroe Street	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		361.04– 361.66	581.04– 582.04	362A	4th Street	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
				362B	8th Avenue	Signed as exit 362 eastbound
				362C	10th Avenue / Madison Street	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
		362.11	582.76	363	Adams Street / Branner Trafficway
		363.08– 363.82	584.32– 585.51	364A	California Avenue
				364B	Carnahan Avenue / Deer Creek Trafficway
		364.58	586.73	365	Rice Road
		365.39	588.04	366	US-40 / K-4 east / Kansas Turnpike / I-470 west – Wichita	Last free exit eastbound; east end of US-40/K-4 overlap
		366.29	589.49	East Topeka Interchange toll plaza West end of toll road
				—	I-470 / Kansas Turnpike west to I-335 – South Topeka, Wichita	West end of Kansas Turnpike overlap; I-70 westbound exits turnpike via exit 183; westbound exit and eastbound entrance; exit numbers follow KTA mileage
	​	370.90	596.91	Topeka Service Area
Douglas	​	379.96	611.49	197	K-10 east (South Lawrence Trafficway) – Lecompton, Lawrence	Toll exit numbers follow Kansas Turnpike; access to Lecompton provided by CR-438 (North 1800 Road)
	Lawrence	384.71	619.13	202	To US-59 south – Lawrence
		386.25	621.61	204	US-40 / US-59 to US-24 – Lawrence
Leavenworth	​	391.71	630.40	Lawrence Service Area
	Tonganoxie	394.55	634.97	212	Tonganoxie, Eudora
	​	399.55	643.01	Eastern Terminal toll plaza East end of toll road
Wyandotte	Kansas City	406.29	653.86	224	K-7 / US-73 north / US-24 west / US-40 west – Bonner Springs, Leavenworth	Exit number follows Kansas Turnpike mileposts; last free exit westbound; west end of US-24/US-40 overlap; southern terminus of US-73; westbound exits signed as exit 224A (south) and 224B (north)
		409.19	658.53	410	110th Street – Kansas Speedway	Exit numbers follow mileage of I-70.
		410.48	660.60	411A-B	I-435	I-435 exits 12A-B; signed as exits 411A (south) and 411B (north)
		413.20	664.98	414	78th Street
		414.35	666.83	415	Turner Diagonal / College Parkway	Diverging Diamond Interchange
		415.93	669.37	417	57th Street
		417.57	672.01	418A-B	I-635 – St Joseph, Wichita	Signed as exits 418A (north) and 418B (south) eastbound; westbound access is part of exit 419; I-635 exits 4A-B
		418.04	672.77	419	Park Drive / 38th Street
		419.32	674.83	420A	US-69 south (18th Street Expressway)	West end of US-69 overlap; east end of Kansas Turnpike
				420B	18th Street north
		421.12	677.73	421A	Railroad Yard – No outlet, railroad use only	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
				421B	I-670 east to I-35 south – St. Louis	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
		420.68– 421.33	677.02– 678.06	422A	US-69 north (7th Street Trafficway)	East end of US-69 overlap
				422B	US-169 south (7th Street Trafficway)	West end of US-169 overlap
				422C	Pacific Avenue
				422D	Central Avenue
		421.68– 422.26	678.63– 679.56	423A	5th Street	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
				423B	James Street / 3rd Street	Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
				423C	Minnesota Avenue / Washington Boulevard	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
				423D	Fairfax District	Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
Kansas–Missouri line		422.82	680.46	I-70 / US 24 / US 40 east / US 169 north continue into Missouri
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus       Incomplete access       Tolled

Auxiliary routes

I-70 has two auxiliary routes in Kansas:

• I-470 - a loop around the southern side of Topeka, signed as the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Highway and overlapping the Kansas Turnpike on the southeast side of town.
• I-670 - an alternate route for I-70 travelers through downtown Kansas City, signed as the Dillingham Freeway and as Alternate I-70.

References

1. "Route Log and Finder List - Interstate System - table 1". Federal Highway Administration. 2002-10-31. Retrieved 2007-07-08.
2. Rex C. Buchanan; James R. McCauley (1987). Roadside Kansas. University Press of Kansas (Kansas Geological Survey). pp. 96–102. ISBN 978-0-7006-0322-0.
3. "Tolls". Kansas Turnpike Authority.
4. "Big Impact Seen For Local Area In Superhighway". Lawrence Daily Journal-World. October 24, 1956. pp. 1–2.
5. "KTA Officials Say Traffic Heavy on Pike This Morning". Lawrence Daily Journal-World. October 20, 1956.
6. 1963-1964 Kansas State Highway Map (Map). Kansas Department of Transportation. Retrieved February 26, 2011.
7. 1965 Kansas State Highway Map (Map). Kansas Department of Transportation. Retrieved February 26, 2011.
8. 1966 Kansas State Highway Map (Map). Kansas Department of Transportation. Retrieved February 26, 2011.
9. 1970 Kansas State Highway Map (Map). Kansas Department of Transportation. Retrieved February 27, 2011.

External links

• Kansas Highway Maps: Current, Historic, KDOT
• Big Ol' Windfarm in Kansas on YouTube - video of the Smoky Hills Wind Farm around mile 230 on Interstate 70, near Ellsworth