Interstate 35 (I-35) is an

Interstate Highway The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, or the Eisenhower Interstate System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Hi ...

in the US that runs from the Mexican border near

Laredo, Texas Laredo ( ; ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Webb County, Texas, Webb County, on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Founded in 1755, Laredo grew from a villag ...

, to

Duluth, Minnesota Duluth ( ) is a Port, port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County. Located on Lake Superior in Minnesota's Arrowhead Region, the city is a hub for cargo shipping. The population ...

. In

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, the highway goes from the

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

border to

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

at the

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

border, with a length of . Along the way, I-35 passes through Wichita, the state's largest city, linking it to Emporia,

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

, and Kansas City and its Johnson County suburbs. The section of the route from the Oklahoma border to I-335 is part of the Kansas Turnpike.

Route description

Oklahoma border to Emporia

I-35 enters Kansas from Oklahoma where the southern terminus of the Kansas Turnpike is located. After passing U.S. Highway 166 (US-166, East 160th Street South, exit 4) to the east of South Haven, the Interstate passes through a toll plaza, making I-35 into a

toll road A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road for which a fee (or ''Toll (fee), toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented to help recoup the costs of road construction and ...

. The highway then passes US-160 (East 10th Avenue, exit 19) east of

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

, then the Belle Plaine Service Area, the first of three on I-35, and the first of six on the turnpike. After the service area, the turnpike continues due north to Wichita and intersects I-135 (exit 42). After the I-135 interchange, the turnpike turns northeast and goes around Downtown Wichita. I-35 passes through Wichita's suburbs and, in the process, intersects US-54/ US-400 (East Kellogg Avenue, exit 53A). The Towanda Service Area lies north of the Wichita area. Thereafter, the route intersects US-77 (North Main Street, exit 76) and various state highways near

El Dorado El Dorado () is a mythical city of gold supposedly located somewhere in South America. The king of this city was said to be so rich that he would cover himself from head to foot in gold dust – either daily or on certain ceremonial occasions � ...

. After El Dorado, the highway enters the Flint Hills region of Kansas. After passing the Cassoday interchange ( K-177, exit 92), the turnpike begins its stretch with no exits. The only stop along the way is the Matfield Green Service Area. Located north of Cassoday, it is also the last service area on I-35. After the remaining with no exits or services, I-35 leaves the turnpike in Emporia. Here, the Interstate meets I-335 (exit 127), which the Turnpike carries toward

Topeka Topeka ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County, Kansas, Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeaste ...

Emporia to Kansas City

I-35 passes through a toll plaza to continue on its own alignment running eastward through east-central Kansas. At Ottawa, it turns to a more northeasterly direction. After passing through the Kansas suburbs of the Kansas City Metro Area, it then crosses the state line into Missouri and into Downtown

History

The original plan for I-35 was to follow US-50 from Newton, as well as US-81 and US-177 to the Oklahoma state line. But when the Kansas Turnpike was created, a part of I-35 was created south of Emporia. The Newton segment was declined, and there was another routing for US-50 that traveled north (which is known today). The segments from Olathe to

Shawnee The Shawnee ( ) are a Native American people of the Northeastern Woodlands. Their language, Shawnee, is an Algonquian language. Their precontact homeland was likely centered in southern Ohio. In the 17th century, they dispersed through Ohi ...

were created by 1962. The relocations of US-75 and K-31 were finished by 1975. I-35 in Kansas (as known today) had its final modification in 1976. The

Kansas Department of Transportation The Kansas Department of Transportation (KSDOT) is a state government organization in charge of maintaining public roadways of the U.S. state of Kansas. Funding issues Since 2012, over $2 billion has been diverted from its coffers to the Kans ...

(KDOT) worked with the Burns & McDonnell engineering company to design a new interchange at Homestead Lane (exit 205) in Johnson County as a diverging diamond. The first interchange of its kind in the state, it opened September 28, 2013.

Exit list

Auxiliary routes

There are five auxiliary routes branching directly or indirectly from I-35 in Kansas: *: a spur route from Wichita to Salina; originally signed as I-35W until September 1976 **: a loop around the westside of Wichita; branches off of I-135 *: a segment of the Kansas Turnpike connecting I-35 in Emporia to the state capital,

*: the Kansas City beltway *: a bypass of downtown Kansas City providing access to I-29 in Missouri and Kansas City International Airport

References

External links