U.S. 54 Expansion in Seward County and Other Regional Projects

Project Description

KDOT is investing more than $100 million in Seward County highway infrastructure to enhance safety, reduce congestion and support economic growth within the region. There are 12 projects in various stages along U.S. 83 and U.S. 54 including four-lane expansion, passing lanes, pavement preservation and intersection improvements. The map below shows project locations and stages. The numbers on the map correspond to the project details listed in the legend table below.

Planning & Design*	Currently Under Construction**	Future Construction**
1. U.S. 54 Four-Lane Expansion Design from 0.5 miles NE of Panhandle Rd to Seward/Meade county line	4. U.S. 54 Four-Lane Expansion from Tucker Rd to County Rd O ($23.3M) Timeline:  Estimated completion Nov. 2023	8. U.S. 54 Passing Lanes from Meade/Seward county line east for 1.8 miles Timeline: Contractor bids planned for spring 2023
2. U.S. 54 Four-Lane Expansion Discovery Phase from U.S. 83 to Tucker Rd (includes the former Six-Points Intersection)	5. U.S. 54 Four-Lane Expansion from west of Arkalon Park Rd (Rd R) to Panhandle Rd, new bridge over Cimarron River ($27.6M) Timeline:  Estimated completion Nov. 2022	9. U.S. 54 Passing Lanes 3.4 miles east of the U.S. 54/U.S. 160 junction east for 2.7 miles Timeline: Contractor bids planned for spring 2023
3. U.S. 83 Passing Lanes Study from U.S. 160 to U.S. 56 (Two separate projects split at the Seward/Haskell county line)	6. U.S. 83 Repaving with Passing Lanes from Oklahoma border to just north of U.S. 83/K-51 junction ($17.6M)  Timeline:  Estimated completion Oct. 2023	10. U.S. 54 Repaving 1.8 miles east of Meade/Seward county line to just west of Meade city limits Timeline: Contractor selected; construction to start in 2023
	7. U.S. 83 & Salley Road Intersection Improvements adding turns lanes and an acceleration lane ($2.7M)  Timeline:  Estimated completion Oct. 2023	11. U.S. 83 Repaving with Passing Lanes from 1 mile north of K-51 to U.S. 160 Timeline: Contractor selected; construction to start in 2023
		12. U.S. 83 Pavement Reconstruction from Sublette to County Rd 150 Timeline: Contractor bids planned for winter 2023
*These projects are in the planning and design phase, and there are no traffic impacts at this time. Anticipated impacts will be communicated in advance of construction.	**All highways planned to remain open to traffic through construction—including projects currently under construction and future construction projects listed here.

U.S. 54 Four-Lane Expansion Access Changes

KDOT is making significant investments on the U.S. 54 corridor between Liberal and Kismet to reconstruct and expand the existing highway to a four-lane expressway. Consolidating the number of direct highway access points decreases the number of potential conflict points—where crashes could occur. That means county roads and driveways with current access to the highway will be closed, with traffic being re-routed to select intersections via local roads and new connector routes. Currently, there are two construction projects underway and two projects in the early discovery phase. As part of these projects, access to U.S. 54 has changed along the corridor and is summarized in the map and legend below.

Access Changes Legend

1/2	On the south, County Rd 7 and County Rd M access to U.S. 54 will be closed and rerouted via a new M-7 Connector anticipated to be open by the end of 2022.
3/4	On the north, County Rd 7 and County Rd M access to U.S. 54 will be closed and rerouted via a new M-7 Connector. Construction is anticipated in 2023.
5/6	County Rd 6 access to U.S. 54 is closed on both sides of the expressway. Additional access roads are being considered in future phases.
7/8	Bluebell Rd  and 2nd St access to U.S. 54 was closed in 2013.

Project Materials

The meeting materials discussed at the Nov. 10 public meeting are available below for review.

• Seward County Regional Highway Improvements Fact Sheet – English (9MB)
• Seward County Regional Highway Improvements Fact Sheet – Spanish (1MB)
• Public Meeting Presentation – English only (4MB)

Meeting information can be made available in alternative accessible formats upon request. For information about obtaining an alternative format, contact the KDOT Division of Communications, 700 SW Harrison St., 2nd Fl West, Topeka, KS 66603-3745 or phone 785-296-3585 (Voice)/Hearing Impaired – 711.

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Who to Contact

Ron Hall
Southwest District Engineer
620-765-7074
ron.hall@ks.gov

Yazmin Moreno
Southwest District Public Affairs Manager
620-765-7080
yazmin.moreno@ks.gov