Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[X99]

This thread highlights major road construction projects in or near Rapid City, with a main focus on the diverging diamond at I-90 and Lacrosse Street, and the widening of West Omaha Street.

PROJECT LINKS:
I-90 Lacrosse Street Diverging Diamond- website | facebook
Omaha Street Reconstruction Project- website | facebook

Original post:
So on my way to and from work on I-90 between Exits 61 and 63, I've noticed that the Mall Drive extension has started construction, except for the portion where it ties into the service road routing. And yet the signs on Americas Way still all show a Seger Drive extension instead, with one sign at the end showing what they're actually doing.
Also, the first roadway forming the Shepherd Hills development (shown in plans as an extension of Valley Drive) seems to have stopped after finishing the curbs for a few hundred yards, and the Anamosa extension looks like it's still just graded dirt (at least, that's how it looks from the last turnoff to the Menards parking lot).
Are there any other road projects in the Rapid City area planned anytime soon (namely, extending Cheyenne Boulevard to Radar Hill Road and rebuilding Highway 1416 as a three FIVE lane undivided highway), and what is the timetable on Anamosa Street and Valley Drive?

[X99]

After a little more searching, I found something else: South Dakota's first Diverging Diamond Interchange will be at Lacrosse Street in Rapid City, but I can't seem to find a timetable for construction, or when it is supposed to start.

EDIT: Construction is planned to start in 2020, though no specific month is given.
UPDATE: Construction has stopped being delayed, and preparations are underway for construction to start in February 2021.

[The Ghostbuster]

There are no DDIs here in Madison (although one was built at Exit 177 on Interstate 39/90 in Janesville). There may be two DDIs constructed on Stoughton Rd. (US 51) in the future. The present-day diamond interchanges for US 12/18 at 51, and STH-30 at US 51 have been proposed to be converted to DDIs. Construction of such is likely a long way off (completion of the FEIS for the US 51 Stoughton Rd. corridor study is not expected until the fall of 2022, assuming they don't push the date back again.)

[ozarkman417]

Dang, I never realized how much Rapid City likes SPUIs. If more areas get DDIs, there will be less confused tourists here, where DDIs are everywhere.

[X99]

Dang, I never realized how much Rapid City likes SPUIs.

At least one of those SPUIs is justified: Exit 60. Here's what it looked like before it was an SPUI:

The north-south road bridging over I-90 on the right is Dyess Avenue, which now dead-ends at the interstate on both sides.

[M86]

So on my way to and from work on I-90 between Exits 61 and 63, I've noticed that the Mall Drive extension has started construction, except for the portion where it ties into the service road routing. And yet the signs on Americas Way still all show a Seger Drive extension instead, with one sign at the end showing what they're actually doing.
Also, the first roadway forming the Shepherd Hills development (shown in plans as an extension of Valley Drive) seems to have stopped after finishing the curbs for a few hundred yards, and the Anamosa extension looks like it's still just graded dirt (at least, that's how it looks from the last turnoff to the Menards parking lot).
Are there any other road projects in the Rapid City area planned anytime soon (namely, extending Cheyenne Boulevard to Radar Hill Road and rebuilding Highway 1416 as a three FIVE lane undivided highway), and what is the timetable on Anamosa Street and Valley Drive?

DDIs are also planned at 41st Street/I-29 in Sioux Falls, and at SD 11/I-90 in Brandon, but the one in Rapid City should open first.

As far as Rapid City SDDOT projects, this is taken from the 2020-2023 STIP, minus the LaCrosse Street interchange and the Box Elder project you mentioned, and a ton of small type of routine projects:

These are in 2020.

Location:
Sheridan Lake Road from Jct. of US 385 to Alberta Road.
Type of improvement:
Grading, Base Course, C&G, AC Surfacing.

Location:
SD 44 (Omaha St) - Fm Mt. View Rd to the start of the divided lanes Near 12th St.; SD 231 (W Chicago/W Omaha) - Fm   St to Mt View Rd (SD 44) in Rapid City.
Type of improvement:
Urban Grading, Storm Sewer, Curb & Gutter, Sidewalk, Traffic Signals, PCC Surfacing, Lighting; Str Repair & Widening Over Rapid Creek.

Location:
SD 445 - Deadwood Ave and Krebs Drive.
Type of improvement:
Install Left Turn Lane.

And, preliminary engineering at US 16/Catron Blvd. If I remember correctly, they are considering many at-grade and grade-separated options, including a DDI. Also under consideration is an Echelon interchange and a Continuous Flow Intersection for US 16/Catron, which are both that we don't even have in our region. The only Continuous Flows that I know of are in Salt Lake City. No idea where Echelon interchanges are.

There are also various smaller projects like ADA ramp upgrades, pavement restorations, etc.

That's state projects. I tried to find information on the city's website for Rapid City and wasn't successful, although I didn't spend a lot of time digging.

[X99]

DDIs are also planned at... SD 11/I-90 in Brandon

I have never heard of the one proposed in Brandon until now. And as of 2018 Street View, there isn't even a stoplight at that interchange.

...preliminary engineering at US 16/Catron Blvd. If I remember correctly, they are considering many at-grade and grade-separated options, including a DDI. Also under consideration is an Echelon interchange and a Continuous Flow Intersection for US 16/Catron, which are both that we don't even have in our region. The only Continuous Flows that I know of are in Salt Lake City. No idea where Echelon interchanges are.

I once mentioned in a Fictional thread that it would be nice to have a grade-separated interchange at US 16 and Catron, though in my mind it was a Haines-style SPUI due to all of the businesses popping up near that intersection. (This was in Fictional because it was coupled with a proposal to tunnel I-190 under downtown to extend the interstate designation to the bypass intersection.) And after looking up what an Echelon interchange is, I don't think it would fit in the space available unless the entire intersection was somehow shifted north.

[kphoger]

DDIs are also planned at... SD 11/I-90 in Brandon

I have never heard of the one proposed in Brandon until now. And as of 2018 Street View, there isn't even a stoplight at that interchange.

If you're interested, take a look at this .pdf for more information.

[M86]

Dang, I never realized how much Rapid City likes SPUIs. If more areas get DDIs, there will be less confused tourists here, where DDIs are everywhere.

SDDOT loves SPUIs. Look at I-29 through north Sioux Falls. That area was rebuilt in the early 2000s. There's 3 of them at Benson Road, Madison Street, and 12th Street.

[X99]

Dang, I never realized how much Rapid City likes SPUIs. If more areas get DDIs, there will be less confused tourists here, where DDIs are everywhere.

SDDOT loves SPUIs. Look at I-29 through north Sioux Falls. That area was rebuilt in the early 2000s. There's 3 of them at Benson Road, Madison Street, and 12th Street.

South Dakota loves SPUIs as much as Missouri loves DDIs.

[M86]

I have never heard of the one proposed in Brandon until now. And as of 2018 Street View, there isn't even a stoplight at that interchange.

Someone posted the study earlier, but Street View imagery depicts a non-busy area. It isn't. There is a heavy left-turn movement onto I-90 westbound and a heavy right turn from I-90 southbound onto SD 11/Splitrock Blvd during peak hours. Growth from Sioux Falls from the west will eventually reach Brandon and they're just planning it out. What's there is clogged up.

I once mentioned in a Fictional thread that it would be nice to have a grade-separated interchange at US 16 and Catron, though in my mind it was a Haines-style SPUI due to all of the businesses popping up near that intersection. (This was in Fictional because it was coupled with a proposal to tunnel I-190 under downtown to extend the interstate designation to the bypass intersection.) And after looking up what an Echelon interchange is, I don't think it would fit in the space available unless the entire intersection was somehow shifted north.

Here is a link to the final report of the study of that intersection:
US 16/US 16B Intersection Study Final Report

From the report, a Continuous Flow or SPUI will likely be constructed here. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if they put in a Continuous Flow as sort of a "guinea pig project". The construction costs are significantly cheaper, even cheaper than an at-grade intersection. I feel like they did this with a SPUI on I-229 at 10th Street in Sioux Falls back in the late '90s (I think). I love reading studies and reports from the SDDOT website, and Continous Flows are just now showing up on the radar of engineering companies.

That being said, I hope they don't do that. This is an intersection that has significant tourist traffic and driver unfamiliarity would be very high.

[X99]

I have never heard of the one proposed in Brandon until now. And as of 2018 Street View, there isn't even a stoplight at that interchange.

Someone posted the study earlier, but Street View imagery depicts a non-busy area. It isn't. There is a heavy left-turn movement onto I-90 westbound and a heavy right turn from I-90 southbound onto SD 11/Splitrock Blvd during peak hours. Growth from Sioux Falls from the west will eventually reach Brandon and they're just planning it out. What's there is clogged up.

I once mentioned in a Fictional thread that it would be nice to have a grade-separated interchange at US 16 and Catron, though in my mind it was a Haines-style SPUI due to all of the businesses popping up near that intersection. (This was in Fictional because it was coupled with a proposal to tunnel I-190 under downtown to extend the interstate designation to the bypass intersection.) And after looking up what an Echelon interchange is, I don't think it would fit in the space available unless the entire intersection was somehow shifted north.

Here is a link to the final report of the study of that intersection:
US 16/US 16B Intersection Study Final Report

From the report, a Continuous Flow or SPUI will likely be constructed here. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if they put in a Continuous Flow as sort of a "guinea pig project". The construction costs are significantly cheaper, even cheaper than an at-grade intersection. I feel like they did this with a SPUI on I-229 at 10th Street in Sioux Falls back in the late '90s (I think). I love reading studies and reports from the SDDOT website, and Continous Flows are just now showing up on the radar of engineering companies.

That being said, I hope they don't do that. This is an intersection that has significant tourist traffic and driver unfamiliarity would be very high.

I noticed the options that included a flyover ramp for the westbound-to-southbound movement. In my opinion, if any intersection in Rapid City needs a westbound-to-southbound flyover, it's East North Street and Cambell Street.

[X99]

I found ANOTHER proposed DDI for South Dakota: a possible option for I-90 exit 63's rebuild into a full interchange. At this point, from what I can see, there are three options, all of which remove the old ramps (one of which has followed that alignment since before the Interstate system): Diamond on Westgate, Diamond on 1416, and DDI on 1416. I hope they choose one of the 1416 options, as their "possible future connection to Bennett Road" could actually be a possible future business corridor all the way to Haines Avenue. SD 200 anyone?

Also, if anyone can find something on the planned reconstruction of the Radar Hill Road/Highway 1416 intersection, could they please post it here?

[M86]

I found ANOTHER proposed DDI for South Dakota: a possible option for I-90 exit 63's rebuild into a full interchange. At this point, from what I can see, there are three options, all of which remove the old ramps (one of which has followed that alignment since before the Interstate system): Diamond on Westgate, Diamond on 1416, and DDI on 1416. I hope they choose one of the 1416 options, as their "possible future connection to Bennett Road" could actually be a possible future business corridor all the way to Haines Avenue. SD 200 anyone?

Also, if anyone can find something on the planned reconstruction of the Radar Hill Road/Highway 1416 intersection, could they please post it here?

You must have found the I-90 Exit 61-67 Corridor Study on the DOT's website. Outside of that, I have nothing, unfortunately.
That 1416 alignment in Box Elder always looked interesting. That has to be due to Ellsworth Air Force Base?

[X99]

I found ANOTHER proposed DDI for South Dakota: a possible option for I-90 exit 63's rebuild into a full interchange. At this point, from what I can see, there are three options, all of which remove the old ramps (one of which has followed that alignment since before the Interstate system): Diamond on Westgate, Diamond on 1416, and DDI on 1416. I hope they choose one of the 1416 options, as their "possible future connection to Bennett Road" could actually be a possible future business corridor all the way to Haines Avenue. SD 200 anyone?

Also, if anyone can find something on the planned reconstruction of the Radar Hill Road/Highway 1416 intersection, could they please post it here?

You must have found the I-90 Exit 61-67 Corridor Study on the DOT's website. Outside of that, I have nothing, unfortunately.
That 1416 alignment in Box Elder always looked interesting. That has to be due to Ellsworth Air Force Base?

1416 was, as it is named now, the old routing of US 14 and US 16 before the Interstates existed. (Source: Historic Aerials. You have to use the topo overlays, since the aerials only go back to 1971.) I've been told the wide median (which I've also seen before in Missouri) was meant for semis with long trailers to turn and not stick out into the driving lanes of the expressway. The only roadway that changed so far due to the base is Exit 66 on I-90, which was removed because planes could have crashed into it.

And yes, I found the 61 to 67 study, while Google searching "radar hill road highway 1416." I hope the RHR/1416 intersection becomes a roundabout, and I'm not alone on that. I also hope that Exit 63's replacement stays on 1416, as their label for a future westward connection could turn into a four-lane business corridor across the north side of Rapid City. It also doesn't affect anything but farmland, while the other options go through houses, an abanoned casino, and the 4U. (It's currently a Philips 66 Yesway gas station, but I've lived here for ten years, so it will always be the 4U to me.)

Over on the Fictional forum, I proposed an SD 200 that would extend west from the end of 1416, as either a full freeway extension of I-90, a freeway/expressway bypass of Rapid City, or an arterial, and I'm kinda surprised that the arterial option (Option 3 on this map) is what they are actually considering, except for the fact that I moved the roadway north to use the existing bridge plus new structure, and decommissioned the southbound lanes. Their plans don't take into account the plans by the city of Box Elder to rebuild 1416 as a single roadway at about the same time as the interchange is getting rebuilt.

Oh yeah, that's another thing: Box Elder is planning to rebuild the four-lane-divided Highway 1416 as a THREE LANE road. The four lane is packed at rush, and they want it smaller. My proposal- make it a five, center turn lane, off the south side of the current westbound lanes. There's house space on the south side if you add in a gravel service road to connect them all.

im just rambling at this point ill stop talking now

[M86]

Oh yeah, that's another thing: Box Elder is planning to rebuild the four-lane-divided Highway 1416 as a THREE LANE road. The four lane is packed at rush, and they want it smaller. My proposal- make it a five, center turn lane, off the south side of the current westbound lanes. There's house space on the south side if you add in a gravel service road to connect them all.

im just rambling at this point ill stop talking now

It's not the city of Box Elder, it's SDDOT. They have jurisdiction over this road.
And I've seen similar scenes in eastern SD. It's all about traffic counts.
But what's with this Box Elder city stuff? They've been in the media lately.

[WestDakota]

Oh yeah, that's another thing: Box Elder is planning to rebuild the four-lane-divided Highway 1416 as a THREE LANE road. The four lane is packed at rush, and they want it smaller. My proposal- make it a five, center turn lane, off the south side of the current westbound lanes. There's house space on the south side if you add in a gravel service road to connect them all.

im just rambling at this point ill stop talking now

It's not the city of Box Elder, it's SDDOT. They have jurisdiction over this road.
And I've seen similar scenes in eastern SD. It's all about traffic counts.
But what's with this Box Elder city stuff? They've been in the media lately.

Interesting.  The North Dakota DOT and some cities in North Dakota are obsessed with turning 4 lane roads into 3 lanes too.  Bismarck, Mandan, and Dickinson either have done it or have it planned.

[M86]

Interesting.  The North Dakota DOT and some cities in North Dakota are obsessed with turning 4 lane roads into 3 lanes too.  Bismarck, Mandan, and Dickinson either have done it or have it planned.

It's been happening in SD. And it's needed. They built overkill (there's no reason why Randomville with a population of 300 needs a 4-lane state or US highway through town. They're focused on safety now.

[X99]

Interesting.  The North Dakota DOT and some cities in North Dakota are obsessed with turning 4 lane roads into 3 lanes too.  Bismarck, Mandan, and Dickinson either have done it or have it planned.

It's been happening in SD. And it's needed. They built overkill (there's no reason why Randomville with a population of 300 needs a 4-lane state or US highway through town. They're focused on safety now.

I don't know if I can agree with you on that one. 1416 is pretty packed during rush hour and when school lets out, and Box Elder has a population of almost 10,000. Five-lane Liberty Boulevard was built in the early 2000s, with no connection to four-lane divided 1416. From what I've been able to find, 1416 is planned to connect to the south end of Liberty Boulevard with more than two lanes in the future. Plans show a three lane road, but I hope they make it a four-lane undivided or a five-lane road.
I guess my biggest problem here is that I don't know where I can present my ideas to the state for consideration. Their plan for the Exit 63 replacement being nearly identical to my 1416 extension proposal was pure coincidence.

[M86]

I don't know if I can agree with you on that one. 1416 is pretty packed during rush hour and when school lets out, and Box Elder has a population of almost 10,000. Five-lane Liberty Boulevard was built in the early 2000s, with no connection to four-lane divided 1416. From what I've been able to find, 1416 is planned to connect to the south end of Liberty Boulevard with more than two lanes in the future. Plans show a three lane road, but I hope they make it a four-lane undivided or a five-lane road.
I guess my biggest problem here is that I don't know where I can present my ideas to the state for consideration. Their plan for the Exit 63 replacement being nearly identical to my 1416 extension proposal was pure coincidence.

So, SDDOT completely redid their website. And I think they removed some studies/reports, but I could be wrong.

I'm thinking of some of the East River stuff that has happened within the past few years. Generally, a three-lane road with a center turn lane is safer than a four-lane undivided/divided road, if the traffic counts are there. And they usually are.

I'd contact Steve Gramm, he's the guy behind most studies:
https://dot.sd.gov/contact?id=794.

[X99]

Found this on the video for the Lacrosse DDI linked on the SDDOT website.

Best rendering of it I've seen yet.

[X99]

I have found a total of five planned DDIs for the state of South Dakota:
I-90 exit 59 at Lacrosse Street (Rapid City)
I-90 exit 63 at CR 1416/Old US 14/16 (Box Elder)
I-90 exit 406 at Splitrock Boulevard (Brandon)
I-29 exit 77 at 41st Street (Sioux Falls)
Mount Rushmore Road (US 16) at Catron Boulevard (US 16 Bypass) (Rapid City)

The first and fourth options are listed as future construction projects. The second and third options are still in the planning phase, and the last option was dropped in favor of an SPUI or partial CFI. The signage now labels the left turn lanes as a left exit, which has always been a little odd in my opinion considering it's not an exit ramp, or even separated from the main lanes by anything other than a painted line.

[X99]

I saw a few construction vehicles on I-90 through Rapid City a few days ago. From what I could see heading eastbound, it looked like they were replacing exit signage (one of the signs for Exit 60 showing the way to the School of Mines and the Fairgrounds is now blue instead of green if I remember correctly). However, when I passed the construction crew themselves, they were sitting right in front of the westbound offramp for Lacrosse Street. I couldn't tell if they were just replacing/upgrading the exit sign, or looking at grading for the new longer ramps for the DDI. I'll try to drive past there again soon to check.

Update: Looks like they were just replacing the sign, along with all the other signs on both directions on I-90 through Rapid City. There's a nice new "HOSPITAL" sign for the Haines exit that in my opinion should have gone on the 60 mph I-190 instead of the 35 mph Haines Avenue, despite the hospital being on Haines/5th Street. They could have added two more hospital signs on existing sign gantries on I-190 and Omaha to get back to 5th Street.

[brad2971]

Found this on the video for the Lacrosse DDI linked on the SDDOT website.

Best rendering of it I've seen yet.

Judging from this picture, the owners of the Common Cents on the southside of the exit, and the Mobil station on the northside of the exit are going to get a few pretty pennies out of SDDOT for loss of safe northbound access. Accessing both stations in the northbound lanes is going to be quite dangerous if that design goes through.

[X99]

Found this on the video for the Lacrosse DDI linked on the SDDOT website.

Best rendering of it I've seen yet.

Judging from this picture, the owners of the Common Cents on the southside of the exit, and the Mobil station on the northside of the exit are going to get a few pretty pennies out of SDDOT for loss of safe northbound access. Accessing both stations in the northbound lanes is going to be quite dangerous if that design goes through.

First off, this design is going through. Construction starts next year. Second, there's a center turn lane to both of those. All that the northbound traffic has to do to get to the Common Cents is wait for the southbound light to go red with no one turning right off the ramp. Same for the Mobil- you just have to wait for the light at Disk Drive to get a clear path across the southbound lanes.

I realize now that I never posted my other picture of the interchange diagram on this thread, so here it is.


As this shows, both of the aforementioned entrances are being moved further from the ramp terminals for ease of access. I don't know how they plan on doing that with the entrance to the Mobil though, since the existing entrance already has a mildly steep upward slope and the proposed new entrance location has even more of a height difference.