K-32, also known as the Kaw Valley Scenic Highway, is an approximately east–west
state highway
A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either ''numbered'' or ''maintained'' by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered by a ...
in the
Kansas City metropolitan area
The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more th ...
of
Kansas
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...
. K-32's western terminus is just outside
Lawrence
Lawrence may refer to:
Education Colleges and universities
* Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States
* Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States
Preparator ...
at
U.S. Route 24
U.S. Route 24 (US 24) is one of the original United States highways of 1926. It originally ran from Pontiac, Michigan, in the east to Kansas City, Missouri, in the west. Today, the highway's eastern terminus is in Independence Township, Mic ...
(US-24) and
US-40. Its eastern terminus is at
US-69
U.S. Route 69 (US 69) is a major north–south United States highway. When it was first created, it was only long, but it has since been expanded into a Minnesota to Texas cross-country route. The highway's southern terminus (as well as ...
, also known as the
18th Street Expressway
The 18th Street Expressway (often shortened to 18th Street in everyday speech) is a freeway in Kansas City, Kansas that runs from Interstate 35 north to Interstate 70/U.S. Route 24/ U.S. Route 40. It carries the U.S. Route 69 designation its enti ...
, in
Kansas City
The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...
. Along the way it intersects several major highways, including
K-7 in
Bonner Springs
Bonner Springs is a city in Wyandotte, Leavenworth, and Johnson counties, Kansas, United States. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 7,837. Bonner Springs was incorporated as ...
as well as
Interstate 435
Interstate 435 (I-435) is an Interstate Highway beltway that encircles much of the Kansas City metropolitan area within the states of Kansas and Missouri in the United States.
Route description
I-435, a loop route of I-35, is long and i ...
(I-435) and
I-635 Interstate 635 may refer to:
* Interstate 635 (Kansas–Missouri), a connector highway between Interstate 35 in Overland Park, Kansas and Interstate 29 in Kansas City, Missouri, signed as the Harry Darby Memorial Highway
* Interstate 635 (Texas)
I ...
in Kansas City. In Kansas City, K-32 follows the
Turner Diagonal from Kaw Drive to Kansas Avenue. From its western terminus to Bonner Springs, the highway is a two-lane rural highway; the remaining section is a four-lane highway that runs through residential areas.
K-32 was first established as a state highway in 1927. At that time, the highway ran from US-40 northeast of Lawrence to the Missouri border in Kansas City. By 1937, K-32 was realigned off of Kansas Avenue to follow Muncie Bluff Road and Central Avenue through Kansas City. In the early 1950s, the highway was built on a new alignment to the east and west of
Linwood Linwood may refer to:
Places
Many of the place names for Linwood come from the presence of linden trees. Australia
*Linwood, South Australia
* Linnwood, Guildford, 11-35 Byron Road, Guildford, New South Wales
Canada
* Linwood, Ontario
* Linwood, ...
. In the late-1960s, K-32 was upgraded to a four-lane highway between Bonner Springs and Kansas City. In the early-1990s,
K-132 was decommissioned, at which time K-32 was realigned onto the former section from K-32 eastward. K-32's alignment has not changed since the latter realignment.
Route description
![K-32 eastbound at Leavenworth County Route 1 to I-70](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/16/K-32_eastbound_at_Leavenworth_County_Route_1_to_I-70.jpg)
K-32's western terminus is at
U.S. Route 24
U.S. Route 24 (US 24) is one of the original United States highways of 1926. It originally ran from Pontiac, Michigan, in the east to Kansas City, Missouri, in the west. Today, the highway's eastern terminus is in Independence Township, Mic ...
(US-24) and
US-40 in extreme northeastern
Douglas County, northeast of
Lawrence
Lawrence may refer to:
Education Colleges and universities
* Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States
* Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States
Preparator ...
. From this intersection, K-32 heads east along Linwood Road and quickly enters
Leavenworth County
Leavenworth County (county code LV) is located in the U.S. state of Kansas and is part of the Kansas City metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 81,881. Its county seat and most populous city is Leavenworth.
Histo ...
.
The highway crosses over
Interstate 70
Interstate 70 (I-70) is a major east–west Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the United States that runs from Interstate 15, I-15 near Cove Fort, Utah, to a park and ride lot just east of Interstate 695 (Maryland), I-695 in ...
(I-70) and the
Kansas Turnpike
The Kansas Turnpike is a , freeway-standard toll road that lies entirely within the US state of Kansas. It runs in a general southwest–northeast direction from the Oklahoma border to Kansas City. It passes through several major Kansas cities ...
; however, there is no connection. The roadway proceeds east to Golden Road, where the highway shifts north slightly as it crosses Kent Creek. K-32 continues to an intersection with County Route 1, which connects K-32 with I-70 and the Kansas Turnpike. The roadway continues east and soon enters the northern part of
Linwood Linwood may refer to:
Places
Many of the place names for Linwood come from the presence of linden trees. Australia
*Linwood, South Australia
* Linnwood, Guildford, 11-35 Byron Road, Guildford, New South Wales
Canada
* Linwood, Ontario
* Linwood, ...
. The highway exits the city and crosses over Stranger Creek then curves northeast and passes Saroxie Lake.
K-32 continues to Hemphill Road, where it curves east, then intersects 170th Street. The highway crosses
Little Kaw Creek then intersects North 158th Street south of
Basehor.
K-32 crosses into Wyandotte County as it enters
Bonner Springs
Bonner Springs is a city in Wyandotte, Leavenworth, and Johnson counties, Kansas, United States. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 7,837. Bonner Springs was incorporated as ...
as Kump Avenue.
[ The highway crosses Wolf Creek then intersects K-32 Truck (Scheidt Lane). The roadway curves south then intersects the eastern terminus of K-32 Truck (Front Street). K-32 heads northeast along Front Street, parallel with a ]BNSF Railway
BNSF Railway is one of the largest freight railroads in North America. One of seven North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 35,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and nearly 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that ...
track. The highway transitions to four lanes then reaches a partial cloverleaf interchange
A partial cloverleaf interchange or parclo is a modification of a cloverleaf interchange.
The design has been well received, and has since become one of the most popular freeway-to-arterial interchange designs in North America. It has also bee ...
with K-7. The roadway curves more east and begins to parallel Mission Creek then enters Edwardsville south of the Lake of the Forest. In Edwardsville, it picks up the name of Kaw Drive. K-32 intersects North 4th Street (former K-107) then crosses Beits Creek.
K-32 continues through the city to a partial cloverleaf interchange with I-435
Interstate 435 (I-435) is an Interstate Highway beltway that encircles much of the Kansas City metropolitan area within the states of Kansas and Missouri in the United States.
Route description
I-435, a loop route of I-35, is long and ...
on the Edwardsville–Kansas City
The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...
line. The highway curves more northeast and passes through the southwest portion of Kansas City before reaching an interchange with the Turner Diagonal. Here, K-32 turns southeast and crosses the Kansas River. The highway intersects South 55th Street then continues east along the north edge of the BNSF Railway yard. K-32 reaches a partial cloverleaf interchange with I-635 Interstate 635 may refer to:
* Interstate 635 (Kansas–Missouri), a connector highway between Interstate 35 in Overland Park, Kansas and Interstate 29 in Kansas City, Missouri, signed as the Harry Darby Memorial Highway
* Interstate 635 (Texas)
I ...
as it enters a heavy industrial area. East of I-635, K-32 crosses the Kansas River again before reaching its eastern terminus at a partial cloverleaf interchange with US-69
U.S. Route 69 (US 69) is a major north–south United States highway. When it was first created, it was only long, but it has since been expanded into a Minnesota to Texas cross-country route. The highway's southern terminus (as well as ...
, also known as the 18th Street Expressway
The 18th Street Expressway (often shortened to 18th Street in everyday speech) is a freeway in Kansas City, Kansas that runs from Interstate 35 north to Interstate 70/U.S. Route 24/ U.S. Route 40. It carries the U.S. Route 69 designation its enti ...
. Past US-69, the highway continues as Kansas Avenue.[
The entire length of K-32 is known as the Kaw Valley Scenic Highway.] The Kansas Department of Transportation
The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) is a state government organization in charge of maintaining public roadways of the U.S. state of Kansas.
Funding issues
Since 2012, over $2 billion has been diverted from its coffers to the Kansas ...
(KDOT) tracks the traffic levels on its highways. On K-32 in 2020, they determined that on average the traffic varied from 2,010 vehicles per day near the western terminus to 16,000 vehicles per day slightly east of I-635. The majority of K-32 is maintained by KDOT; the section in Bonner Springs from the west city limit to the southbound on-ramp for K-7 and the section in Kansas City from South 55th Street to US-69 are maintained by those municipalities. The section of K-32 from K-7 eastward is part of the National Highway System.
History
K-32 was first established as a state highway by the Kansas State Highway Commission (SHC), now known as KDOT, in 1927. At that time, the highway went from US-40 northeast of Lawrence and through Bonner Springs to the Missouri border in Kansas City,[ following Kansas Avenue through Kansas City.] By 1937, K-32 was realigned to follow Muncie Bluff Road and Central Avenue through Kansas City. In a resolution passed on July 1, 1937, the SHC approved to designate the former section of K-32 along Kansas Avenue as K-132. In a resolution passed on May 8, 1945, it was approved to realign K-32's western terminus slightly northeastward, which eliminated a crossing over Mud Creek. Prior to this, the highway got covered with water every time Mud Creek flooded.
K-32 originally followed Golden Road west of Linwood. East of Linwood it continued east along Golden Road to 170th Street (County Route 3), where it turned north. It continued north to Hemphill Road, where it turned east. In a resolution approved on September 11, 1945, it was approved to realign K-32 to leave Linwood and travel directly northeast to Hemphill Road. Then in a resolution approved on January 10, 1952, that resolution was updated to include the section of K-32 from Linwood west to Golden Road. At the end of August 1952, the SHC asked for bids for grading and a bridge on the new location of K-32 from Linwood northeastward and bids for grading for a new location of K-32 from the Leavenworth-Douglas county line east to Linwood. On October 1, 1952, the SCH approved a $424,305 (equivalent to $ in dollars) bid for the two sections. By the end of July 1953, grading work was nearly complete, with work remaining to be done on the bridge over Stranger Creek.
By 1957, the Kansas Turnpike
The Kansas Turnpike is a , freeway-standard toll road that lies entirely within the US state of Kansas. It runs in a general southwest–northeast direction from the Oklahoma border to Kansas City. It passes through several major Kansas cities ...
(I-70) had been built through Kansas City, including an exit with K-32. By 1962, US-40 was realigned to follow the Turner Diagonal to K-32 then overlap the latter to I-70. Also, K-32's eastern terminus was extended to the Turnpike.
At the end of August 1967, the SHC asked for bids to add a pair of lanes to K-32 from 88th Street in Kansas City west to K-7 in Bonner Springs. In late September 1967, the SHC accepted bids for grading, pavement, seeding, and four bridges on the project, as well as drainage and surfacing work on K-7 at the interchange with K-32. The project was completed by 1969.
By 1969, the overlap between US-40 and I-70 was extended west to exit 415, which removed the overlap between K-32 and US-40. In the early 1970s, the entire length of K-32 was designated as the Kaw Valley Scenic Highway. By 1981, I-435 had been built from K-32 southward to just south of K-10. By 1984, I-435 had been extended north slightly past K-32. By 1993, K-132 was decommissioned, and K-32 was realigned to follow the section of the former highway east to US-69. By 2011, the exit with County Route 1 was built. This created a connection with I-70 and US-40 north of K-32.
Major intersections
Special routes
Truck route
K-32 Truck is a truck route
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame constructi ...
of K-32 that serves Bonner Springs and bypasses the downtown area. Starting from K-32 west of the city, it begins traveling southeastward along Scheidt Lane. The roadway reaches an intersection with East Front Street, where it turns northeast. The highway reaches an at-grade crossing with a track as it begins to parallel the Kansas River. K-32 Truck proceeds to its eastern terminus at the intersection of Front and Cedar streets, with K-32 continuing east on Front Street. K-32. The truck route was approved on May 1, 2000, in a city council meeting, alongside an ordinance prohibiting trucks on Cedar Street and Kump Avenue.[
]
Former temporary route
Temporary K-32 was a former temporary route
In road transportation in the United States, a special route is a road in a numbered highway system that diverts a specific segment of related traffic away from another road. They are featured in many highway systems; most are found in the Int ...
for K-32 that ran along the former section of K-32 along Dan Wilson Road and Kansas Avenue in Kansas City.[ In a resolution passed on July 1, 1937, K-132 was approved to be established, replacing the entire length of Temporary K-32.][
]
References
External links
Kansas Department of Transportation State Map
KDOT: Historic State Maps
{{DEFAULTSORT:K-32 (Kansas Highway)
032
Transportation in the Kansas City metropolitan area
Transportation in Douglas County, Kansas
Transportation in Wyandotte County, Kansas
Transportation in Leavenworth County, Kansas