Ummmm, it is on topic. It's about the new I-40 <---that's relevant ;-)

Agreed on the old exits and on-ramps.

But maybe I wasn't clear. If I get off today at either Western or Shields, where do I get back on I-40 to go east from downtown? Where do I get back on to go west? Are there east and west on ramps onto I-40 at Western and Shields now?

I finally did it today - left downtown to go to Midwest City. Easy peasy - EK Gaylord --->Shields. South - stay in right lane. Exit is a bit confusing as it digital sign says "next exit" but it is really "That" exit. Circle around to I-40 - long entrance ramp. Even with semis coming, it was simple to merge and move over to the left with plenty of time. MUCH better than the short entrance, unhill ramp onto old EB I-40 from Robinson.
I'm officially a believer - but glad my going home time is 3:30 and not 5 PM.

The western side of downtown will see all of its connections restored once that section of the boulevard is complete. Should be the first section to open up.
The eastern side of downtown has Shields/EK Gaylord which will eventually connect to the boulevard which will provided easier access to the central parts of downtown.

Your current assessment is fair. Just promised to reevaluate once everything is completed.

Thanks for your responses, they do give me some hope. I was wondering about the quoted section above though... do you know when the Blvd is scheduled to be complete/open? Also, I am curious who is putting up the money for it... is it the state? Honestly our state government worries me. So often they just bail on their commitments that I hope if they're involved we really get the money to complete the thing. If it's the city I would feel pretty good about that.

For those that have driven on the new I-40 now, can one see the land run monuments very well, or does it look like one will be able to when the westbound lanes open up?

You know, I have driven it a few times and I don't remember ever seeing it. So maybe not. I will try to remember to watch more closely next time and let you know.

Agreed on the old exits and on-ramps.

But maybe I wasn't clear. If I get off today at either Western or Shields, where do I get back on I-40 to go east from downtown? Where do I get back on to go west? Are there east and west on ramps onto I-40 at Western and Shields now?
Again, the westbound won't be open for 3-8 weeks...

Thanks for your responses, they do give me some hope. I was wondering about the quoted section above though... do you know when the Blvd is scheduled to be complete/open? Also, I am curious who is putting up the money for it... is it the state? Honestly our state government worries me. So often they just bail on their commitments that I hope if they're involved we really get the money to complete the thing. If it's the city I would feel pretty good about that.

2 years before being fully completed. Its mostly ODOT funded with maybe a little bit of money from the city.

You know, I have driven it a few times and I don't remember ever seeing it. So maybe not. I will try to remember to watch more closely next time and let you know.

Thanks! I was afraid my question was going to get lost on the last page and I didn't want to re-ask it in case people just didn't want to answer. lol

I think everyone agrees traffic has improved and the area along the old I-40 will improve. Just imagine how much better it would have been if 50% of the traffic was routed around the city.

I have better idea. Let's just move all of the freeways out of Oklahoma. We could route all of that pesky traffic to Texas and Kansas so we wouldn't be bothered by all of those people who might want to annoy us by spending their money here.

Okay, guys, c'mon, some people may be frustrated, but get real here. The entire project has not even complete yet. Interstate highways should always have the least amount of entrance and exit ramps possible to prevent the chance of an accident. The more ramps there are, the greater the risk factor, because there will be people trying to enter and exit, merging, changing lanes, and rush hours make it worse. The main goal is to maintain speed and keep it all going. When the westbound is completed, it will open, and then the old I-40 will be torn down. After that, the Boulevard will be built and open for the purpose of multiple access to the streets. I believe the Boulevard will have multiple lanes and maintain a decent speed with state of the art traffic lights to be all timed together. The Boulevard will be a vital access route in and out of Downtown. That is the one that will complete your overall destination. Don't worry about what the new I-40 has to offer. When its all completed, you will finally understand and be very pleased with smoothness and enhanced safety. Simmer down, now.

I don't think I have ever seen a Thunder post like that before...well done. :congrats:

I was expecting to see something about a zombie apocalypse....

Wow... Thunder just stepped up to home plate and hit a grand slam in the bottom of the 9th. I feel like my son just graduated college. =,)

I've driven it twice now, both times were at night and I feel its turning Oklahoma drivers into Dallas drivers. I will admit, I'll go 5-10 over but I was being passed at 7 over and they had some speed... Was more than just 1 car also. It does feel 'big city' to me, maybe its just the 'new' I can't want to see it during the day and look forward to seeing the Skydance lit up. Both times were to drive through and I was impressed overall, feels like downtown just passes by so much fast because of it.

http://newsok.com/challenges-and-opportunities-emerge-with-opening-of-new-interstate-40-in-oklahoma-city/article/3638935

One downside, feared from the moment the route was chosen, is that it severely cuts access to downtown. The old eastbound I-40 had exits at Western, Walker and Harvey avenues that funneled directly into the central business district.

I disagree. Everything is under construction for at least 2 to 3 more years, so deal with that for the time being. Afterward, access will be greatly improved. Western exit is still there. Shields exit is a great addition. Who cares about Walker... I can't remember what order Harvey is at. Anyway, as I said in the earlier post, the important priority is to ensure I-40 laid out in the most safe way possible. According to people's reports, there are double left-turn lanes, so that is better than previous one left-turn lane. Then its a quick access onto the new Blvd where people will still have the same access points along the way. Trust me, Steve, you'll see when the time comes. :-)


In the meantime, however, eastbound travelers have quite the detour into downtown, and destinations including the Oklahoma City National Memorial, Bricktown and the Oklahoma City Museum of Art have the challenge of ensuring interstate drivers still manage to leave the highway to include these tourism spots to their travel plans.

A challenge for now, maybe for some, but when the Blvd is done...no challenge. Exit on Western...exit on Shields...pick an exit, then quickly go onto the new Blvd and easily find the street where any one of those attractions reside within. I am sure there will be signage properly erected along the Blvd directing drivers with nice arrows. :-)


The design of the roadway, bridges and retaining wall is almost complimentary to the city, though it also loses much of the dramatic skyline view that was provided by the former alignment. But when the eastbound lanes are at ground level, the earliest views are of the Oklahoma River. It's a good view — one that presents the river in its best light.

The safety of drivers is most important than elaborate views of what OKC has to offer. Sure, its nice to be attractive, but the drivers' main priority on the road is to maintain their attention on the road and surrounding traffic. No time for scenery thrills. People can enjoy the scenes outside of their vehicles. :-)


What's lost on this drive are the up-close views of the Chesapeake Energy Arena and most of Bricktown.

It is not a loss. Currently on the old I-40, the view of the Thunderdome are only the upper half with the "ooooo, ahhh, awwww" lighting. I haven't driven on it during the day...yet, but I'm sure that the view of the arena will be improved when the old I-40 is torn down and surrounding areas cleaned up. :-)


The Producer's Cooperative Oil Mill dominates the view of the skyline even more than the 50-story Devon Energy Center and does nothing to lessen fears expressed by civic boosters, including Lee Allen Smith, that the property sends the wrong message about the city to thousands of motorists passing through the city on I-40 every day.

I disgree. Driving on the old I-40 and the new I-40 is about the same distance apart. The only thing different is that its on the left side now (when traveling eastbound) and right side now (when traveling westbound). Devon Tower is still a massive tower and eye-catching. In a few years...within a decade or so, we will have another rival tower(s). The downtown skyline will continue to grow, in fact, with I-40 being pushed to the south, it gives the downtown core more room to expand. Additionally, we will enjoy the view of the grand central park. Realistically, there isn't any wrong message. The only message the drivers and travelers will get is that OKC is growing and will continue to evolve into rival major-league city. :-)


In hindsight, one also might wish the wonderful mural painted on the OKC Rocks rock climbing gym — the old grain elevator south of Bricktown — had been extended to the south facade facing the new road.

Patience, grasshopper. I am confident that a new mural will be painted on the south side. After all, OKC is dedicated to the beautification of our great city. Give it time. You may want to bring it to the owner's attention (or at the next city meeting for them to approach the owner on this). :-)

...

Change are naturally feared by many. It can be good. It can be bad. Sometime sacrifices have to be made. But all in the end, we will adjust and come to accept our great city and admire how far we have come to get to where we are today. By then, everything will be the norm and we wouldn't have it any other way.

Enjoyed reading your article, Steve, good day.

I drove it for the first time this weekend. I was impressed to say the least. I think it shows the future of Oklahoma City Interstates. From what I observed the outside lane was closed to keep traffic from bottlenecking at the Dallas Junction. It looked like they were still doing lane work at the Dallas junction so it connects properly to the section between the Dallas and Ft. Smith junctions. I really enjoyed driving it because there weren't so many twists and turns. It seemed like drive went by in little or no time at all. The most impressive view was downtown emerging from the North. It reminded me of many of the larger cities I have drove through over the years. It was an awesome view to say the least.

I think one thing people are going to have to get used to the fact that the days of having on/off ramp access at every street are numbered. ODOT and Oklahoma City are going to learn from this that traffic patterns flow better with On and Off Ramps at large interchanges, on or off access at the medium traffic streets, lighter traffic streets with no access.

I think you could clear up the congestion on I-240 by placing Full Service Ramps at Shields and May. Have "On" access each direction at Penn With "Off" access each direction at Western. Walker and Santa Fe could go without ramps and could be accessed by service road from Shields or Western. This could be done over the course of a summer. To ease congestion even more you could add an additional lane that fed directly to the turnarounds at each intersection. It would probably save a few lives and few wrecked cars.

As it is there are too many accidents/near miss accidents at the western on ramp and the penn off ramp. The traffic exiting at each interchange log jams the service road. When I lived southside I worked on 240 and lived off of 89th Street. I took 20 minutes to get home on some days just because you have to wait for the lights to cycle 2 or 3 times to clear the light.

Drove it last night.

Loved it.

Now I need to drive it during the day.

I've driven it twice now, both times were at night and I feel its turning Oklahoma drivers into Dallas drivers. I will admit, I'll go 5-10 over but I was being passed at 7 over and they had some speed... Was more than just 1 car also. It does feel 'big city' to me, maybe its just the 'new' I can't want to see it during the day and look forward to seeing the Skydance lit up. Both times were to drive through and I was impressed overall, feels like downtown just passes by so much fast because of it.

Honestly, the last two times I've been on it I felt that people were poking. As in 5-10 mph UNDER the speed limit. But then again, I use to live in DFW and have been called a "Dallas Driver" on multiple occasions so maybe its just me.

Slow drivers aside, definitely agree about the "big city" feel when you get on it. My biggest fear was that the new route would take people away from seeing Dowtown/Bricktown and instead take them through an area of what is now dumpy looking warehouses. Instead, the freeway is sunken just enough to where you don't see a lot of the blight and get magnificent views of the Devon Tower and the river.

IMO very rarely does ODOT get it right, but they hit a home run on this. Don't underestimate the impact that infrastructure improvements give to a city. I could certainly see this rising to the impact level that the Big I gave to Albuquerque, ironically also on I-40.

IMO very rarely does ODOT get it right, but they hit a home run on this. Don't underestimate the impact that infrastructure improvements give to a city. I could certainly see this rising to the impact level that the Big I gave to Albuquerque, ironically also on I-40.

Definitely agree with you on Albuquerque and in general on the impact of nice infrastructure. The transformation of I-40 and construction of the Big I dramatically changed that corridor and really helped give Albuquerque more of a "big city" feel, not to mention significantly easing congestion. I suspect the same is true with the new Crosstown in OKC.

For those that have driven on the new I-40 now, can one see the land run monuments very well, or does it look like one will be able to when the westbound lanes open up?


I looked for them today and yes, then can be seen quite well if you are not distracted looking at the river and the boat houses on the other side of the road. Love the new views of the river there and back west of western.

I keep reading about how well you can see things while driving on the new I-40. While I'm sure this is true if driving a SUV/pickup truck/semi, it is not true for a low profile vehicle like us city folk drive. Since the retaining walls are so high, the river is barely visible unless sitting straight up like an old person. Until the westbound lanes are open, I'll focus on mine and others driving through the area.

My first trip this weekend I was driving a sports car and had no problem seeing the river view from the approach to Western. There's a point where you look straight down a section of it that's really nice. I got off at shields though and I don't remember much else notable. I was looking at the bird and highway features mostly anyway.

Today was a crosstown and I was in a 1/2 ton but I still think you could see boat house row from a regular vehicle. Maybe not the land run monument. IIRC the view from my lane had that not too much higher than the far concrete barrier.

I wonder how long before Google Street View will catch up?

You can see the backyards of those homes right at the bend. Noise must drive them crazy. City doesn't really want them there so its not like their ever going to build a sound barrier.

You can see the backyards of those homes right at the bend. Noise must drive them crazy. City doesn't really want them there so its not like their ever going to build a sound barrier.

That's one way to get somebody to move.

You can see the backyards of those homes right at the bend. Noise must drive them crazy. City doesn't really want them there so its not like their ever going to build a sound barrier.

Whether or not it's a sound barrier, it said in Steve's story that they are going to put up a decorative wall later this year.

I wonder how long before Google Street View will catch up?

Unfortunately, it will probably be awhile unless they think it's worth another trip to the metro just for I-40. The google maps cars were here at the end of 2007/beginning of 2008, then just last spring and summer.

My first trip was today and I had to travel from I44 to Western to exit going south. I did the reverse later. When going north on Western there was a VERY long wait at the light at the I40 intersection even with extremely light traffic. I have to wonder if it's just on a strict timer or if the traffic detection system will be used at some point to speed things up.

I looked for them today and yes, then can be seen quite well if you are not distracted looking at the river and the boat houses on the other side of the road. Love the new views of the river there and back west of western.

Imagine what it's going to look like with the OU Boathouse, Grandstands and Stadium lights!! It's going to be AWESOME!!

I looked for them today and yes, then can be seen quite well if you are not distracted looking at the river and the boat houses on the other side of the road. Love the new views of the river there and back west of western.

Imagine what it's going to look like with the OU Boathouse, Grandstands and Stadium lights!! It's going to be AWESOME!!

I drove the new stretch from beginning to end yesterday at 5pm - rush hour sweet spot.... got on at 44 and exited on 35... and I didn't even so much as tap my brakes until I was exiting.

I think the "doer" seeking "perfection" is a drama queen.

I love the new I-40, the only thing I miss and will have to get use to is up-close views of Bricktown/down heading westbound. I do agree there is a much more "big city" feel although.

I think the new perspective makes downtown Okc seem much larger. It makes since too, being that the new downtown view is from lower and wider angles.

Downtown looks fantastic as you turn onto shields.

I drove through today about 10 after 7:00. I set the cruise on 70 and didn't slow down until the merge with I-35. I noticed for the first time that there was more traffic exiting on Shields than Western.

It's a great drive.

Can anyone foresee a problem with both the traffic coming from Shields northbound and from I-35 via the boulevard that is to be built, both will be coming to the same corner right by the hotel? I can see a big traffic jam every morning and evening, taking several lights to clear the stoplight at that corner. Travelers will have to go through this corner whether they plan on using the boulevard or Shields to get onto I-40 eastbound.

I think the city could have done a great job in having a frontage road on both sides of the new I-40, from Western to the east to at least Robinson and probably Shields. I do not like when a person exits onto Shields they cannot turn around and go back to Robinson or Walker. They have to travel south to SW 25th then take that and get to where they want to go.

So much more could have been done to make that area more easy to get around.

Supposedly, there will be other access roads once the boulevard is finished. Not sure how it will work out, but I agree with OKCNDN that the potential at rush hour could be bad. I'm glad I'm given the option for a flexible schedule. 5 AM to 3 PM is not so tough for the traffic-phobic!

Can anyone foresee a problem with both the traffic coming from Shields northbound and from I-35 via the boulevard that is to be built, both will be coming to the same corner right by the hotel? I can see a big traffic jam every morning and evening, taking several lights to clear the stoplight at that corner. Travelers will have to go through this corner whether they plan on using the boulevard or Shields to get onto I-40 eastbound.

I think the city could have done a great job in having a frontage road on both sides of the new I-40, from Western to the east to at least Robinson and probably Shields. I do not like when a person exits onto Shields they cannot turn around and go back to Robinson or Walker. They have to travel south to SW 25th then take that and get to where they want to go.

So much more could have been done to make that area more easy to get around.

One thing to note is that going westbound there is no Shields exit ramp, there is a Robinson ramp instead. So you will have some people who will stay on I-40 and use their regular Robinson route. Also, their really isn't any reason for drivers going eastbound to drive all the way to Shields once the new boulevard is completed if they work in the western or central part of downtown. It will all balance out in the end.

Supposedly, there will be other access roads once the boulevard is finished. Not sure how it will work out, but I agree with OKCNDN that the potential at rush hour could be bad. I'm glad I'm given the option for a flexible schedule. 5 AM to 3 PM is not so tough for the traffic-phobic!

Especially since OKC has no traffic

I'm sure OKC will be clever with the new stoplights having both, the timers and traffic sensors. The timers will be a huge boost to clear out the north/south traffic very quickly during rush hours by letting the timer go a bit longer. Less traffic, the sensors will kick in and optimize the flow. Relax, kids, do not worry. Traffic lights made today are much more advance than the centuries old traffic lights installed in OKC eons ago.

I drove the new I-40 today a little after 5:20 and like others have said there is pretty much no traffic during rush hour, atleast when I went through.

I'm sure OKC will be clever with the new stoplights having both, the timers and traffic sensors. The timers will be a huge boost to clear out the north/south traffic very quickly during rush hours by letting the timer go a bit longer. Less traffic, the sensors will kick in and optimize the flow. Relax, kids, do not worry. Traffic lights made today are much more advance than the centuries old traffic lights installed in OKC eons ago.

The longer the light stays green for one direction the longer it stays red for the other traffic. This causes traffic to back-up and creates the very thing the longer time was supposed to avoid. The lights need to cycle faster (about every 25 seconds) and in downtown they should cater to pedestrians. People should be encouraged to walk or ride the streetcar with new parking garages either being along the streetcar line or on the periphery of downtown. If you want more traffic keep catering to cars (see the Dallas thread).

The longer the light stays green for one direction the longer it stays red for the other traffic. This causes traffic to back-up and creates the very thing the longer time was supposed to avoid. The lights need to cycle faster (about every 25 seconds) and in downtown they should cater to pedestrians. People should be encouraged to walk or ride the streetcar with new parking garages either being along the streetcar line or on the periphery of downtown. If you want more traffic keep catering to cars (see the Dallas thread).

It depends. Going east/west on the Blvd, there are multiple on-ramps to I-40 for both eastbound and westbound, so all those cars will not be at one intersection all at once. Picture yourself floating high above looking down. You will see cars getting onto I-40 at multiple locations, which quickly eases up traffic congestion. So, with east/west traffic lights having longer red lights, it wouldn't cause harm. One of the most priority with traffic flow is to ensure north/south keep flowing and not be backed up much, because there will be constant flow of people exiting on Shields more so than Western (right, only two exit access for eastbound?). See the picture? Cycling lights faster are not the solution. Twenty-five seconds per cycle is ridiculous. It takes a few seconds for each car to move it. When the light turn green, all cars don't go at once. The first start to go, a second later the next goes, next second the next goes...on and on and on...and it takes several seconds for the 5th car to press the gas pedal.

.....

Will or Metro (I asked Metro in his pictures thread), interested in doing pictures of both old and new I-40 in segments to produce in a video? I think take pictures of the old I-40 first before access gets cut off to the public. Then the new I-40. Produce a video showing segment A old-to-new, segment B old-to-new, and so on. It'd be nice to have it on record to reflect OKC's history of how far we have come from that time to this time. This will be awesome (Spartan thinks it is a bad idea, but ignore him). Or I could try to do this, but parking is hard for me as my truck's reverse is broken. Anyway, Will and Metro has better cameras.

Just the Facts, Thunder is correct with the traffic lights. When morning rush hours come into DT, it is better that the lights for cars exiting the highway and north bound lanes have a longer green light. No, opposite traffic will not build up more, because there will be less traffic in the first place. Then the lights will change for evening rush hours. If you proposed the every 25 second light for both directions then, traffic entering DT during morning hours build up quicker than any other direction. Therefore, causing a jam. If you let their light last longer, you avoid that jam of many cars and the other 10 cars will have to wait a little longer. Better to have 10 cars wait longer than 500 cars get backed up in the same amount of time.

I can't believe people are throwing such a fit about this thing. The true test for everyone will be when westbound opens. Then it will be hectic all over again when the new boulevard opens. I give it about 3 months after it is fully open and 100% completed people will act as if they never missed the old crosstown and it's layouts.

The Oklahoman writer articles are just laughable people are acting as if ODOT should have come to them asked for their input. If they went to everybody's door in the state we would still be in the planning stages arguing over where it was going to go. I just keep asking myself "Where were these clowns with their input when ODOT held the numerous meetings around the metro? Oh yeah, they were too busy watching American Train Wreck or America' Next Top Prison Inmate.

oneforone, I responded to Steve about the article he written, but he chose not to respond. lol

Thunder and holm1231 - you have me confused with someone who is interested in moving cars through downtown as fast possible. That is the least of my concerns. However, I just spent 2 months in Central City Philadelphia and dedicated a large portion of my free time studying why they have such a walkable city. One thing I picked up early on was their 25 second light cycling.

In 2 months I never once saw backups at Philly lights and no one had to sit through two light changes. Every block cleared on every light change every time. In fact, the worst traffic I saw was on the freeway where there are not any lights at all. If you get the chance I suggest you find places with 25 second cycling and see how well it works first hand.

Thunder and holm1231 - you have me confused with someone who is interested in moving cars through downtown as fast possible. That is the least of my concerns. However, I just spent 2 months in Central City Philadelphia and dedicated a large portion of my free time studying why they have such a walkable city. One thing I picked up early on was their 25 second light cycling.

In 2 months I never once saw backups at Philly lights and no one had to sit through two light changes. Every block cleared on every light change every time. In fact, the worst traffic I saw was on the freeway where there are not any lights at all. If you get the chance I suggest you find places with 25 second cycling and see how well it works first hand.


Here you go, Kerry. Work out all of these equations and get back to me when you have the answers. LOL

It makes my head hurt just to think about it.

http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Fundamentals_of_Transportation/Traffic_Signals

Here you go, Kerry. Work out all of these equations and get back to me when you have the answers. LOL

It makes my head hurt just to think about it.

http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Fundamentals_of_Transportation/Traffic_Signals

I had to go through all of that during my planning days but there is a much easier way to do it. Just use empirical observation. Pick an intersection where traffic sucks and see how long the lights stay green. Pick a car and see how many light changes they have to wait through. Then find an area with the same amount of traffic but without congestion and see how fast their lights cycle. The other thing to keep in mind is traffic engineers are only interested in moving as many cars as fast as they can and based on how much traffic congestion we have they all suck at their jobs.

Despite all the math in your link they have this question at the bottom which I find interesting that it is even asked.


Problem

Why don't signalized intersections perform more efficiently than uncontrolled intersections?
Solution

The inherent lost time that comes from each signal change is wasted time that does not occur when intersections are uncontrolled. It comes at quite a surprise to most of the Western World, where traffic signals are plentiful, but there are intersections that perform quite well without any form of control. There is an infamous video on YouTube that shows an uncontrolled intersection in India where drivers somehow navigate through a busy, chaotic environment smoothly and efficiently [1] . The video is humorous to watch, but it shows a valid point that uncontrolled intersections can indeed work and are quite efficient. However, the placement of traffic signals is for safety, as drivers entering an uncontrolled intersection have a higher likelihood of being involved in a dangerous accident, such as a T-bone or head-on collision, particularly at high speed.



The answer explains why 25 second timing works so well. It regulates the flow of traffic for safety but comes very close to be uncontrolled - like people walking through a crowd.

I had to go through all of that during my planning days but there is a much easier way to do it. Just use empirical observation. Pick an intersection where traffic sucks and see how long the lights stay green. Pick a car and see how many light changes they have to wait through. Then find an area with the same amount of traffic but without congestion and see how fast their lights cycle. The other thing to keep in mind is traffic engineers are only interested in moving as many cars as fast as they can and based on how much traffic congestion we have they all suck at their jobs.

Despite all the math in your link they have this question at the bottom which I find interesting that it is even asked.



The answer explains why 25 second timing works so well. It regulates the flow of traffic for safety but comes very close to be uncontrolled - like people walking through a crowd.

That may work well in places but have you never tried to navigate a very busy intersection when the traffic signals are out? It's a nightmare. With that said, I'm not against your 25 second concept though.

http://newsok.com/beams-from-elevated-i-40-crosstown-to-be-given-to-counties-across-oklahoma/article/3640174

I disagree on giving away the beams to the counties. The state should be charging those counties for the beams. It says in the article the estimated value per beam is $8,000. Just think about how much money can be used toward beautification of the new I-40 by planting new trees along the full stretch. We obviously need new trees to be planted now to provide an accent to the Grand Central Park. I'm sad that Steve didn't take my suggestion (I mentioned this before) and include it in the article for the state leaders to at least give my suggestion some serious consideration. It feels like no matter how much I scream, the state leaders and OKC leaders isn't listening. I thought Oklahoma was big on planting trees along interstate highways? I could've sworn there was a program for that. Once again, don't give away the beams for free.

I disagree on giving away the beams to the counties. The state should be charging those counties for the beams. It says in the article the estimated value per beam is $8,000. Just think about how much money can be used toward beautification of the new I-40 by planting new trees along the full stretch. We obviously need new trees to be planted now to provide an accent to the Grand Central Park. I'm sad that Steve didn't take my suggestion (I mentioned this before) and include it in the article for the state leaders to at least give my suggestion some serious consideration. It feels like no matter how much I scream, the state leaders and OKC leaders isn't listening. I thought Oklahoma was big on planting trees along interstate highways? I could've sworn there was a program for that. Once again, don't give away the beams for free.

Because they can't afford them? Really that's like selling your wife or husband something only to have them ask(beg) you for more money later. Money for something practical, I might add, that affects the whole household.

It looks like westbound will be ready to open in a week or two. Crossovers are built now.

It looks like westbound will be ready to open in a week or two. Crossovers are built now.

That sounds fairly close to the estimate they gave.

So when is the old interstate being torn down and boulevard built?

I notice that Google Maps has relocated I-40 at a zoom of 2 miles or closer.

I'm hoping that the old I-40 isn't torn down so fast. How much time do we have left before demolish? Are we allowed to walk on there to take some pictures, like now on eastbound, then later on westbound?

I'm hoping that the old I-40 isn't torn down so fast. How much time do we have left before demolish? Are we allowed to walk on there to take some pictures, like now on eastbound, then later on westbound?

I think I heard somewhere 8 months for the entire crosstown bridge structure, but deconstruction on the east end of the bridge will start shortly after westbound traffic is diverted off. Probably will start on the parts in the way of the westbound lanes on the west side as soon as possible too. Walking on it is probably discouraged since it is an construction site that will dead end at a ledge.

Can you find out for sure? I don't see any construction activities going on the majority of the bridge.

From what it sounded like they are only working on the east edge of the bridge at any time, so they have easy access to get to where they are working (probably can be used to facilitate some of the debris removal too), as work progresses the east edge will slowly be moving west till their is no bridge left.

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