Overland Park officials are revisiting a decade-old plan that has guided infrastructure development in the city’s rapidly growing south to address transportation needs in an area once considered on the rural fringes of Johnson County.
This year, Overland Park plans to update its South Overland Park Transportation Plan, which has helped city officials prioritize key projects to accommodate the needs of the area south of 159th Street.
Over the past several years, that area has seen significant change as more and more suburban development pops up, bringing with it more people and traffic.
At the same time, Overland Park — sometimes with the support of state and federal transportation funds — has made several investments in updating roads and major thoroughfares in that area. More projects are detailed in the city’s capital improvement plan for the next five years, as well.
While what exactly an updated South Overland Park Transportation Plan could mean for the existing roadways in the city’s southern half, it is meant to help pave the way for future projects needed to address shortcomings in that area’s existing transportation network.
What’s happening now?
Overland Park, with the help of local engineering firm HNTB, adopted the southern transportation plan in 2015, incorporating it into a broader framework for laying out future transportation needs. Now, a decade on, the city has tapped the same firm to help with the update.
Last week, the Overland Park City Council Public Works Committee voted 5-0 to move ahead with the update. Councilmember Jeff Cox was absent from the meeting.
“It’s always good to go back and look at our plans,” said Councilmember Logan Heley, who was filling in for Councilmember Holly Grummert at the committee.
Initial plan prioritized capacity, alt. transportation
The 40-page 2015 plan set aside the transportation infrastructure needs in southern Overland Park from the strategy used in the rest of the city, due in part to the uniqueness of the area.
It focused primarily on the area between State Line to the east and Black Bob Road (or Lackman Road) to the west, south of 159th Street running to the Miami County line.
That portion of Overland Park is marked by lower-density housing developments (typically bigger homes on larger lots), a hilly natural terrain and the presence of the Blue River floodplain, said city civil engineer Kyle Dieckman.
At the same time, the city looked at ways to incorporate alternative transportation opportunities, like bicycle and pedestrian access.
The plan didn’t dictate specific projects, but it did establish a framework by which eventual projects could be prioritized.
Overland Park laid out a plan that would allow thoroughfare improvements outside of the normal scope. Typically, the city improves main roads to have four lanes (two going in each direction) divided by a central median.
However, in southern Overland Park, the 2015 plan suggested that the city could do “interim” improvements to just two lanes (one lane going each direction) to meet capacity needs in the short term or even three lanes (two lanes going one way and one lane going the other).
Update will cover south OP transportation through 2050
With the update to the South Overland Park Transportation Plan, the city wants to review the original plan and how it was implemented — successfully or otherwise.
It will also identify “missing links” in the transportation system in the area, according to city documents, including literal gaps in existing roads, a lack of connections or other absent elements that make traveling in the area difficult.
The update will also look at future requirements for adding lanes on major thoroughfares based on forecasted traffic volumes over the next 25 years and local population projections.
Taken together, the aim is for all of that to help the city prioritize more traffic improvement projects in southern Overland Park and identify potential new traffic projects needed to serve current and future residents.
Next steps:
- Now, the decision goes to the full Overland Park City Council next.
- They are likely to vote on the item during the first meeting in May.
- Per the capital improvement plan, the city expects to complete the South Overland Park Transportation Plan with HNTB update this year for a cost of about $250,000.
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