Lyon County Commissioners approved a letter to the Kansas Department of Transportation regarding how closures of the turnpike negatively affect local traffic on Interstate 35.
The approval came following a discussion with Undersheriff John Koelsch Thursday morning at the courthouse. He said the purpose of the letter was to request a meeting with Secretary of Transportation Julie Lorenz.
“It’s based on the joint city/county discussions about when the KTA decides to close and requests our local resources to close the gate,” Koelsch said. “It creates a backup on I-35 and overwhelms our resources in short order. It’s occurred several times over the past several years.”
Koelsch said he understood there were times when the turnpike needed to be closed, but wanted to open up discussions with KDOT to determine if there were other options that could help streamline those closures without taxing local resources.
(Read more: Emporia Gazette)