KDOT outlines $30 million in US-69 safety and mobility upgrades, including five‑leg Quincy roundabout

Kansas Department of Transportation engineers briefed the Crawford County Commission on planned safety and traffic‑flow improvements to the US‑69 corridor on Tuesday, describing a package of committed and under‑development projects that KDOT expects to construct or design through 2030.

KDOT project manager Steve Rockers said the study — built from two years of public engagement — centered on two priorities: reducing crash risk and improving mobility through the corridor. "My name is Steve Rockers. I am a project manager," he said, describing the process of identifying locations for treatment and the outreach to communities along the highway.

Jeff Fisher, a KDOT project lead, told commissioners that KDOT identified 11 improvement locations, several of which are bundled as committed projects with timelines and budgets in place. The planned countermeasures range from edge‑line rumble strips and refreshed contrast pavement markings to lighting upgrades, added turn lanes, and signal modernizations that use video detection and advanced warning systems.

"Eliminating a left hand turn is the best thing that can be done for, improving my own safety," Fisher said when explaining why some intersections will restrict left‑turn movements. He said nine project locations focus on intersections and that four signalized intersections have upgrades committed to construction.

Fisher described the Quincy intersection as both the corridor’s highest crash location and the site with the longest delays; KDOT’s preferred solution is a five‑leg roundabout, which he said would eliminate left turns and reduce delay. "The delay that you'll experience at that intersection is less than 5 seconds," he said. KDOT estimates the roundabout alone at about $8,000,000 and the set of discussed projects at roughly $30,000,000.

KDOT provided near‑term scheduling details: the agency plans to issue a request for proposals for design, begin survey work early next year, and expects some material deliveries (signal poles) by year‑end for projects that could be active in January. KDOT also said right‑of‑way acquisition will be required at some locations and that they have begun meeting with affected property owners and businesses.

Several commissioners asked whether traffic counts support restricting left‑turns at local access points and how changes would affect local travel patterns. Fisher said counts, measurements and designs have been done for many of the locations under discussion and that options include frontage roads or access control where full closures are required.

During public comment, Radley resident Judy Prince said she uses an intersection KDOT discussed daily and reported recent crashes and a death there. "I know of several people that have had accidents there, even deaths there," Prince said, urging the commission and KDOT to consider roundabouts, rumble strips or flashing warning lights.

KDOT said it will continue outreach and expects to return with more detailed design information next summer. Commissioners thanked KDOT staff and noted the agency would follow up on localized signage and timing issues raised at the meeting.

Provenance: presentation and Q&A began at SEG 037 and continued through SEG 543.