Interstate 635 (I-635) is a connector highway between

I-35 Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexico–Uni ...

Overland Park, Kansas Overland Park ( ) is the largest city in Johnson County, Kansas, United States, and the List of cities in Kansas#Highest population listing, second-most populous city in the state of Kansas. It is one of four principal city, principal cities in ...

, and I-29 in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

, approximately long. It is mostly in the US state of

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, servicing the city of

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City (commonly known as KCK) is the third-most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As ...

, but extends into Kansas City, Missouri, as well. The freeway's southern terminus is at a stack interchange with I-35. South of this, the mainline becomes an expressway carrying U.S. Route 69 (US 69). The freeway provides a route around Downtown Kansas City by crossing through residential areas of

, and Riverside, Missouri. It also provides another direct route to Kansas City International Airport.

Route description

Kansas

I-635 begins at

in Johnson County near

Shawnee, Kansas Shawnee is a city in Johnson County, Kansas, United States. It is the seventh-most populous municipality in the Kansas City metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 67,311. History Territory of Kansas Befor ...

, at exit 1A. There is a parclo interchange with Merriam Drive at exit 1B almost immediately after its terminus. It then enters Wyandotte County and

. There is a diamond interchange with Shawnee Drive at exit 1C and a parclo interchange with Metropolitan Avenue at exit 1A upon entering the

Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...

neighborhood. There is an interchange with K-32/Kansas Avenue at exit 3 and then crosses the

Kansas River The Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, is a meandering river in northeastern Kansas in the United States. It is potentially the southwestern most part of the Missouri River drainage, which is sometimes in turn the northwesternmost portion of ...

into central Kansas City, Kansas. Immediately after crossing the river, there is an interchange with I-70 at exits 4A and 4B. There are several interchanges further north, including State Avenue (exit 5), Parallel Parkway (exit 6), and Leavenworth Road and North 38th Street (exit 7). The last public interchange before entering

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

is K-5. A private maintenance facility crossing at grade exists between this exit and the Missouri River.

Missouri

Like I-435, I-635's mileposts do not reset after crossing into Missouri. I-635 crosses the Missouri River from Kansas into Platte County and the city of Riverside, Missouri. There is an interchange with Horizons Parkway at exit 9 and then US 69 at exit 10. US 69 briefly runs concurrently with I-635 north before exiting at the interchange with Route 9 (exits 11A and 11B). I-635 runs about one more mile north, then terminates at I-29/ US 71 at exits 12A and 12B.

History

Missouri began the plans for I-635 in 1958 when

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) is a standards setting body which publishes specifications, test protocols, and guidelines that are used in highway A highway is any public or private road ...

(AASHTO) approved proposals that also included what would become I-435 and I-470; the plan for I-635 took the route eastward along what is now K-5 to US 69 and northward across the Fairfax Bridge toward I-29. When money from the

Highway Trust Fund The Highway Trust Fund is a transportation fund in the United States which receives money from a federal fuel tax of 18.4 cents per gallon on gasoline and 24.4 cents per gallon of diesel fuel and related excise taxes. It currently has two acc ...

became available for a new Missouri River crossing, I-635 got a more westward alignment after 1968. Part of the original alignment was built as a spur going into Fairfax as K-5. In 1990, the highway was given the name Harry Darby Memorial Highway, in honor of US Senator

Harry Darby Harry Darby (January 23, 1895January 17, 1987) was an American politician from Kansas. Life and career Born in Kansas City, Kansas, Darby graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, University of Illinois, and served in the ...

. The interchange with I-70 and the bridge over the Santa Fe Railyard in

were reconstructed in 2004. Maintenance work on the bridge over the

Missouri River The Missouri River is a river in the Central United States, Central and Mountain states, Mountain West regions of the United States. The nation's longest, it rises in the eastern Centennial Mountains of the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Moun ...

finished in September 2005.

Exit list

References

External links

* Kansas Highway Maps
CurrentHistoric
KDOT {{DEFAULTSORT:Interstate 635 (Kansas-Missouri) 35-6 Kansas-Missouri 35-6 35-6 6 Transportation in Johnson County, Kansas Transportation in Wyandotte County, Kansas Transportation in Platte County, Missouri Transportation in the Kansas City metropolitan area 1975 establishments in Kansas 1975 establishments in Missouri