Kansas DOT opens interchange near BNSF's new intermodal facility

The Kansas Department of Transportation on Oct. 11 marked the opening of the state's first diverging diamond interchange on Interstate 35 in southwest Johnson County.

The new interchange will provide access to planned developments in the area, including BNSF Railway Co.'s soon-to-open Logistics Park Kansas City (LPKC) intermodal facility in Edgerton, Kan.

"The interchange will safely serve both the commuter as well as the significant truck traffic that will be generated from the BNSF intermodal development for years to come," said Kansas Transportation Secretary Mike King in a press release.

To open later this month, the 443-acre LPKC facility will handle domestic and international intermodal services that currently are offered at BNSF's Argentine facility in Kansas City, Kan. The LPKC facility will feature six 8,000-foot strip tracks, 5,000 paved parking spaces, five wide-span, electric cranes, five inbound and five outbound lanes, and automated gate systems.

BNSF will hold an open house for the new intermodal terminal on Thursday. The Class I plans to soon begin transitioning intermodal service from the Argentine terminal to LPKC facility.