Tulsa Metro Highways | Small projects and construction

[CoreySamson]

What's with the random "Main Street" sign in the first photo?

The cross street right before the interchange to the south, marked on Google as 146th St, also goes by Main Street in Glenpool:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/iFsNQkW7yZMXzYeJ6

And leave it to ODOT to build a bridge with substandard shoulders in 2025... If that's the direction they're headed in, I'm kind of glad that I got out of there.

I think the lack of a shoulder has more to do with the space they had to work with rather than the overall design direction of ODOT. The interchange is lodged between two pretty deep and expansive ditches. You can see here and here how finagled in there the ramps are between the overpass and the ditch, especially southbound. I suppose reengineering the flow of the ditches would have made the project much more costly and much slower. Given that it was already the worst traffic spot in Tulsa, I think ODOT wanted the solution that caused the least disruptions and would be the quickest, which meant a "substandard" solution.

All that being said, while it's not perfect at all by any means, the fact that they built an entire interchange in a little over a year is still impressive to me.

[Scott5114]

And leave it to ODOT to build a bridge with substandard shoulders in 2025... If that's the direction they're headed in, I'm kind of glad that I got out of there.

I think the lack of a shoulder has more to do with the space they had to work with rather than the overall design direction of ODOT. The interchange is lodged between two pretty deep and expansive ditches. You can see here and here how finagled in there the ramps are between the overpass and the ditch, especially southbound. I suppose reengineering the flow of the ditches would have made the project much more costly and much slower. Given that it was already the worst traffic spot in Tulsa, I think ODOT wanted the solution that caused the least disruptions and would be the quickest.

All that being said, while it's not perfect at all by any means, the fact that they built an entire interchange in a little over a year is still impressive to me.

In Nevada they would have just encased the ditches into tunnels, and probably gotten the whole thing done in about the same time. (Granted, they would have had a somewhat easier time with it, since the flood-control apparatus here is really only used a handful of times per year, so they wouldn't have had to have worried about where the water went during the project's construction period.)

Complexity of the project is really only one factor in how long it takes to construct—the ability to commit money on a timely basis is a factor, too. NDOT is adequately funded, so it can afford to throw however much money it takes at a project to get it done on time.

[swake]

What's with the random "Main Street" sign in the first photo?

And leave it to ODOT to build a bridge with substandard shoulders in 2025... If that's the direction they're headed in, I'm kind of glad that I got out of there.

Because that little curb cut road is "main", not 141st where the exit is located.

I think this bridge is only half the final project. One of eventually TWO bridges for six total lanes. That's why it's so narrow. I'm sure this is all the money they had now, because Oklahoma. It will likely be decades before them come back and finish. Regardless, this is a huge improvement.

[splashflash]

What's with the random "Main Street" sign in the first photo?

And leave it to ODOT to build a bridge with substandard shoulders in 2025... If that's the direction they're headed in, I'm kind of glad that I got out of there.

Because that little curb cut road is "main", not 141st where the exit is located.

I think this bridge is only half the final project. One of eventually TWO bridges for six total lanes. That's why it's so narrow. I'm sure this is all the money they had now, because Oklahoma. It will likely be decades before them come back and finish. Regardless, this is a huge improvement.

I read somewhere too about US 75 ultimately becoming six or eight lanes.  The overpass aligns with the northbound lanes while the southbound cut sharply to the east.  Money saved to avoid expropriating the fuel station in the meantime.

[CoreySamson]

The SH-20/I-44 project in Claremore has wrapped up. I don't know too much about the project. I know it adds a new interchange at I-44 and is realigned slightly south of the town and has bridges over SH-66.

At any rate, here's the press release link: https://oklahoma.gov/odot/about-us/newsroom/2025/-city-of-claremore--rogers-county--odot-and-ota-celebrate-sh-20-.html

Drove this today. Pretty nice 5 lane facility that will definitely help form a sort of northern Tulsa bypass from I-44 to US 169. OK 20's routing is kinda confusing now, as it now loops back over itself south of Claremore and does not intersect I-44 at the new interchange. However, OK 20 is signed on the BGSs for the exit from I-44, not "TO OK 20," which I don't think is technically correct.

And of course there's a sign goof:
https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=87.msg2999681;topicseen#msg2999681