Interstate 670

Interstate 670 Interstate 670 is the designation shared by several auxiliary Interstate Highways in the United States that function as urban connectors, bypasses, or spurs associated with Interstate 70 corridors in multiple metropolitan areas. These routes serve major nodes of transportation, commerce, and civic infrastructure, linking downtown cores, airports, rail terminals, and other Interstate and U.S. Highway corridors. Their alignments intersect with federal, state, and municipal transportation networks and parallel historic turnpikes, riverfronts, and rail rights-of-way.

Route description

In most jurisdictions, the route numbered 670 provides an urban expressway or connector between primary arteries such as Interstate 70, Interstate 70S, Interstate 71, or Interstate 35W and central business districts including Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, Columbus, Indianapolis, and other regional centers. Sections of the corridor follow riverfront alignments adjacent to the Missouri River, Scioto River, or Wabash River floodplains and integrate with multimodal hubs like Kansas City International Airport, John Glenn Columbus International Airport, Indianapolis International Airport. Interchanges commonly connect with U.S. Routes such as U.S. Route 40, U.S. Route 24, U.S. Route 30, and state routes including Ohio State Route 315, Missouri Route 9, and Indiana State Road 67. The roadway design includes design elements found in urban Interstates, such as collector–distributor lanes near complex interchanges like those at High Street (Columbus, Ohio), Broadway (Kansas City, Missouri), and Capitol Avenue (Indianapolis), and passes near landmarks such as Union Station (Kansas City), Ohio Statehouse, Victory Field (Indianapolis), and National World War I Museum and Memorial.

History

Planning for Interstate spurs bearing the 670 number occurred during the expansions influenced by the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 and subsequent urban freeway programs administered by the Bureau of Public Roads and later the Federal Highway Administration. Early alignments were sited to relieve congestion on preexisting routes such as the Pennsylvania Turnpike, Lincoln Highway, and older U.S. Highways, with routing decisions shaped by municipal planning agencies including the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority, Franklin County Engineer, and Indiana Department of Transportation. Construction phases involved contracts awarded to major contractors that had worked on projects like the St. Louis Gateway Arch grounds and the Ohio Turnpike expansions; milestones coincided with events including the 1976 United States Bicentennial and urban renewal programs tied to Model Cities Program initiatives. Environmental and community impacts prompted reviews under statutes such as the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and led to mitigation measures near historic districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places including sections adjacent to the Old North Columbus Historic District and the Westside Neighborhood (Kansas City).

Major intersections

Major interchanges and junctions along routes designated 670 typically include connections with primary Interstates and U.S. Highways: Interstate 70, Interstate 35, Interstate 435, Interstate 71, Interstate 65, Interstate 64, U.S. Route 40, U.S. Route 24, U.S. Route 36, and state highways such as Ohio State Route 315, Indiana State Road 67, Missouri Route 9. Notable interchanges are situated near urban nodes and transit centers such as Kansas City Union Station, Lower.com Field area, IndyGo transit center, and major rail facilities including Kansas City Southern Railway, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern Railway. These junctions interface with arterial streets like Broadway (Kansas City, Missouri), High Street (Columbus, Ohio), Washington Street (Indianapolis), and corridor projects like the I-70/I-71 split complexes.

Services and facilities

Facilities serving the route include park-and-ride lots coordinated with regional transit agencies such as Metro Transit (Kansas City), Central Ohio Transit Authority, and IndyGo, as well as highway rest areas, maintenance yards operated by the Missouri Department of Transportation, Ohio Department of Transportation, and Indiana Department of Transportation, and fueling and truck stops consistent with standards promoted by the Federal Highway Administration. Adjacent development incorporates intermodal terminals using infrastructure comparable to BNSF Railway and Amtrak stations, commercial nodes anchored by corporate campuses of firms similar to Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, Sprint Corporation (now part of T-Mobile US), and hospitality clusters associated with chains like Hilton Hotels & Resorts serving travelers to venues including Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, Greater Columbus Convention Center, and Lucas Oil Stadium.

Future developments and improvements

Planned upgrades often focus on congestion mitigation, safety enhancements, and multimodal integration, influenced by federal funding programs such as those administered through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and state transportation improvement programs developed by agencies including MoDOT, ODOT, and INDOT. Projects under consideration or underway include interchange reconfigurations modeled on initiatives like the Big Dig mitigation strategies, corridor widening similar to expansions on Interstate 270 (Ohio), implementation of intelligent transportation systems comparable to those in Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority corridors, and active transportation links aligned with Rails-to-Trails Conservancy projects. Community engagement processes often involve stakeholders like American Planning Association, Historic Preservation Office, neighborhood associations, and chambers of commerce including the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce and Kansas City Chamber of Commerce to balance mobility, development, and preservation goals.

Category:Auxiliary Interstate Highways