K-10 Zipper Merge? KDOT explains De Soto construction
DE SOTO, Kan. — Eastbound K-10 is down to one lane right now at Cedar Creek between Kill Creek Road and Cedar Creek Parkway.
In the morning, the traffic backup can cause as much as a 30 minute delay.
FOX4 drove eastbound on K-10 around 11:30 Wednesday morning and quickly got over as the highway goes down to one lane.
“It’s pretty bad right now, haha,” Happy Valley Farm Owner Mike Raether said in an interview with FOX4 Wednesday when asked how bad Eastbound K-10 is. “There’s traffic, especially in the morning and at night, but yeah, there’s always traffic now. It backs up. I saw it just the other night backed up all the way to Kill Creek or Lexington, which is three and a half miles, so it’s a good distance.”
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Raether’s farm is south of the highway, but his property actually goes underneath K-10 to the north side with a decent view of the eastbound backup. The Kansas Department of Transportation’s Public Information Officer Delaney Tholen says crews are working on the pavement near that bridge.
“The bridge was built about 50 years ago, and it was just in need of repair,” she said in an interview with FOX4 Wednesday. “This short term pavement project will extend the life of that bridge.”
One question we had for Tholen is when drivers should get over into that one open eastbound lane.
“On eastbound K-10, in advance of Cedar Creek, motorists are encouraged to look for a gap in traffic and move over to the through lane when safe to do so,” she continued.
“Whenever they can?” we asked.
“Correct,” she continued.
Tholen never once used the words ‘zipper merge’ in our eight-minute interview.
Zipper merging is where drivers take turns merging into the one open lane of traffic.
Tholen did say there will be more signs added west of Cedar Creek near Lexington Avenue, so drivers who aren’t using this stretch on a regular basis know about the reduction sooner.
K-10 will be down to one lane in this area until early September.
KDOT asks motorists to:
Slow down and use extra caution when driving through work zones – buckle up, phones down!
Pay close attention to work zone signs and message boards. Not all lane closures are the same.
Plan ahead if traveling the K-10 corridor – allow for extra travel time during rush hours and choose alternate routes when possible.
Disabled vehicles and debris in the roadway can also delay traffic. If you see something large on the road or need roadside assistance on K-10, or any Kansas highway, please call *47 to be immediately connected to the Kansas Highway Patrol.
The eastbound K-10 bridge over Cedar Creek is about 50 years old and has about 15,000 vehicles per day travel over it– these pavement repairs will extend the life of the bridge.
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Other bridges in the area have been repaired the past two summers, according to KDOT, including westbound K-10 over Cedar Creek.
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