| 3-Trails Crossing Memorial Highway | |
|---|---|
The 3-Trails Crossing Memorial Highway as seen from the east, on the Hillcrest Road bridge over I-470 |
|
| Grandview Triangle | |
| Location | |
| Kansas City, Missouri | |
| Roads at junction: |
I-435 US 50 |
| Construction | |
| Maintained by: | Missouri Department of Transportation |
The 3-Trails Crossing Memorial Highway is the official name for a highway interchange in south Kansas City, Missouri that was once considered one of Missouri's most congested locations.[1][2][3] From the nickname, it may be assumed to be located in Grandview, Missouri, but it is actually north of Grandview, still within the limits of Kansas City. After several years of reconstruction, the interchange itself is largely congestion free despite the high traffic on the highways approaching the interchange.
The name "Three Trails Crossing" refers to the Santa Fe, Oregon and California Trails that cross there.[4] It is a major interchange of 4 major highways in the Kansas City area: I-435, I-470, US 50, and US 71.
US 71 is a major traffic corridor from the suburbs in south Jackson County, Missouri and Cass County, Missouri into Downtown Kansas City and is the alignment I-49 is expected to follow in the future, at least to the south of the Crossing. (Designation of US 71 north of the Crossing as I-49 cannot be done without a modification of a Federal court order that mandates the three at-grade intersections in that section.[5]) I-435 is a beltway around the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. I-470 is a major traffic corridor that connects Southern Kansas City to the suburbs of Eastern Jackson County, mainly Lee's Summit, Missouri. The 3-Trails Crossing currently handles approximately 250,000 vehicles per day. Now that the reconstruction is completed, it is be able to accommodate more than 400,000 vehicles per day.