Eastbound I-70 will be closed through downtown Topeka

TOPEKA (KSNT) - Drivers planning to travel east on I-70 through downtown Topeka this weekend will need to find a detour.

The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) has announced eastbound I-70 through downtown Topeka will be closed this weekend. This closure will allow crews to complete pavement patching and maintenance work on the Polk-Quincy Viaduct. The roadway will be closed to all traffic from 11 p.m. Friday, April 19 until work is complete, or no later than 11:59 p.m. Sunday, April 21, according to a release from KDOT.

Because utility relocation work related to the Polk-Quincy Viaduct project is being done on First Street, the I-70 closure are and local detour work will be different than previous closures, according to KDOT.

The MacVicar Avenue exit will be the last exit that is open for drivers headed east. Through traffic are advised to follow signed detours and reroute south to I-470 or north to U.S. 75 to U.S. 24 to K-4. Drivers can also use the local detour: MacVicar Avenue to Sixth Avenue to Monroe Street to the I-70 on-ramp, according to KDOT.

The Gage Boulevard exit to eastbound I-70 will be closed this weekend to lessen the traffic exiting to MacVicar Avenue. Westbound I-70 will stay open as crews work.

The Polk-Quincy Viaduct project is scheduled to start in early 2025. Both directions of I-70 will continue to be reduced to one lane until the viaduct's replacement construction is complete.

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