Kansas Expressway

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - One of south Springfield's busiest intersections will begin to feel a tight squeeze over the next few weeks as work continues on converting it to a diverging diamond interchange. Northbound drivers on Kansas Expressway at James River Freeway will see traffic restricted to one lane beginning April 22.  Two southbound lanes will remain open, transportation officials said; however, those lanes will shift to the northbound side of the bridge. Lanes will be reduced to 11 feet in width as well.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A national chain restaurant chain says it will open not one but two stores in the city.  Five Guys Burgers and Fries will open at Battlefield Mall this summer.  The company previously said it would open a store at 2711 N. Kansas Expressway, between Kearney Street and Interstate 44. The 2,400-square-foot space will be the newest addition to the lifestyle section of the mall on the east side of the property, next to...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Springfield police are investigating a two-car crash at Kansas Expressway and Hovey that left a baby injured. The crash happened Wednesday night shortly before 5:00 p,m.  The baby was riding in an SUV driven by the baby's grandmother.  The impact threw the child's car seat out of the vehicle. Police say the baby was transported to a hospital with minor injuries.  

Springfield - A crash along Interstate 44 near Kansas Expressway shut down the west bound lanes of the highway Tuesday night.  A woman was injured when the car she was in collided with a semi.  Westbound traffic was diverted down Glenstone Avenue and back to I-44 past the accident scene.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A motorcyclist is alive after colliding with a van on Saturday night in west Springfield. Police said the driver of the van failed to yield at Mount Vernon and Kansas Expressway. The motorcycle ended up underneath the van.      Emergency crews helped free the motorcyclist.      They said he may have some broken bones, but his injuries are not life threatening.  

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. --  Since January 1, the City of Springfield has issued 65 building permits.  A lot of them are residential but there are also 19 commercial permits.  Combined, they total more than $50 million put into the local economy.  That means more places to eat and shop around town. Some of your favorites might be on the list.  A new Fog City Coffee is going in downtown, inside the Midtown Carnegie library.  Also, a new Einstein Bros. Bagels will open in September on South Campbell Avenue.  It's the second of four planned for the city.  Famous Dave's Barbeque will be next door to the newest Einstein's.  Also in that area, a new Academy Sports store is going in.  On Republic Road near Kansas Expressway, a new San Francisco Oven will go in near Big Whiskey's.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- The condition of a man badly burned by a campfire early Wednesday morning is described as critically unstable by a nurse at a hospital where he's being treated.  Gary Gibbs, 50, is reported to be homeless. Gibbs apparently rolled into a campfire as he was sleeping near Kearney Street at Kansas Expressway.  A fire marshal says he may have been drinking.  Gibbs is being treated for third- and possibly fourth-degree burns.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A man is in custody after what police call an assault in Springfield.  The incident happened early Thrusday morning at a home in the 1900 block of West Division near Kansas Expressway.  Officers initially thought the victim was stabbed.  She was taken to the hospital.  Investigators have not released any details on her injuries or her condition.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A motorcycle rider suffered at least a broken leg, and possibly some head injuries, when he collided with a car just west of Battlefield Road at Kansas Expressway over the noon hour on Friday. The biker was westbound on Battlefield.  Witnesses told police that he was driving a a high rate speed and maybe even doing wheelies.  A woman pulling out into his path from a side street.  An ambulance took the motorcycle rider to a hospital.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- City police are looking for the driver of a car who caused a head-on crash on Monday night.  It happened just before midnight near Kansas Expressway at Cherokee Street. Police say the driver lost control of the vehicle, swerved across the median and hit another car.  The driver who caused the crash ran off. One person was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- City police are looking for the driver of a car who caused a head-on crash on Monday night.  It happened just before midnight near Kansas Expressway at Cherokee Street. Police say the driver lost control of the vehicle, swerved across the median and hit another car.  The driver who caused the crash ran off. One person was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Springfield police say a woman died of her injuries after failing to stop at a stop sign and being hit by an oncoming vehicle early Friday morning. Holly Vandyck, 22, of Springfield, died at a hospital after a crash at the intersection of North Kansas Expressway at Hamilton Street. The crash was about 12:39 a.m.  Police found a white Chevy Suburban and a flipped-over Chevrolet Cavalier.  Vandyck, the driver of the Cavalier, was unresponsive. Witnesses told police Vandyck did not stop at a stop sign and was hit in the driver's side door.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- The transformation of a major interchange began Monday.  Crews started working on the Kansas Expressway (Missouri 13) at James River Freeway (U.S. 60) interchange in southwest Springfield.   They'll change it to a diverging diamond. Missouri Department of Transportation officials say the project includes rebuilding a section of pavement on Kansas and repairing the bridge deck over the freeway. Officials say congestion at the intersection is increasing as left-hand turns from Kansas onto the freeway compete with drivers navigating through the area.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Friends of the Library will host a book sale in Springfield. Bargain-priced books, CD's, DVD's and more will be available. The sale is open to the public. It begins Tuesday morning and runs through Sunday. Weekday hours run 10 a.m. - 8 p.m. at Remington's on West Republic Road, near Kansas Expressway. For more information, visit the Springfield-Greene County Library website.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - The completion of the new interchange between U.S. 65 and U.S. 60 marks the end of a chapter in highway construction for the city. This end, for now, is being driven not by a lack of need- but money. "We have been talking for several years that our funding is going to really fall off a cliff as it will, and it has happened statewide," said Bob Edwards, spokesperson for the Missouri Department of Transportation. The funding shortfall means we won't be seeing as many lnew roads and bridges.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A pickup belonging to a man found shot to death in a home in Rogersville was found Tuesday morning in Springfield.  A police officer on patrol found the truck in the 1900 block of North Rock Island Avenue, near Kansas Expressway at Division Street. Police say no arrests have been made in the death of Russell Lawson.  The 24-year-old man's body was found by his mother at his home on Mill Street across from Logan-Rogersville Upper Elementary School Monday morning.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - A wreck on Interstate 44 at milepost 79 -- between the Kansas Expressway and Glenstone Avenue exits -- has tied up traffic this morning. The wreck involved two pickups, with one having rolled onto its side in the median. OzarksTraffic.info reported the crash as an injury crash, but the number of people involved and their injuries are unknown. We will have more info as it becomes available.

   Springfield, Mo. -- Interstate 44 traffic will be detoured around the southern part of Springfield for several hours beginning at 10 p.m. Friday, September 21st.  Details follow in a news release from the Missouri Department of Transportation.   I-44 CLOSED at West Bypass In Springfield                                              Sept. 21-22 For Bridge Demolition                        Greene County -- Interstate 44 at West Bypass (Route 160)

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Repairs on a bridge will cause traffic delays on Kansas Expressway (Missouri 13) south of Walnut Street beginning Wednesday.  The project will repair and resurface the Jordan Creek bridge. One northbound and one southbound lane will be closed around the clock.  Traffic will be shifted away from working crews.  Drivers can expect delays especially during morning and afternoon rush hours.  The project to grind off the top layer of pavement on the bridge, repair the bridge deck and resurface the bridge will last until late November.  Weather and/or construction delays would alter the work schedule.  PCi Roads of Minneapolis will do the work for a low bid amount of $619,000.  The project is scheduled for completion by November 30.   

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- A crash between a sport utility vehicle and a tractor-trailer truck on Monday afternoon killed the driver and and injured three passengers.  The crash was about 4:45 p.m. in the 3000 block of West Division Street, which is where the street curves under railroad tracks between Kansas Expressway and West Bypass. Police say witnesses told them the westbound white SUV was speeding and being driven erratically before the crash.  The driver, Shannon Gaylord of Springfield, missed the curve and hit a fully loaded semi truck head-on.  Gaylord, 38, died at the scene.  Two passengers were hospitalized in critical condition and the third one was listed in stable condition on Tuesday afternoon.  Police say alcohol may have been a factor in the crash.  The truck driver is not injured.