Tired of driving through the old Jack’s parking lot to get from Business Loop to Paris Road?
Wondering why half the traffic in this intersection is routed to Ammonette, a small residential street?
Confused about how to cross any of these streets on foot?
Feeling a tad unsafe when you are are walking or biking under the Colt RR bridge?
Then have we got news for you! As part of MODOT’s Improve I70 Project, they’re taking a detour off the interstate to make some improvements to the Business Loop. Both the Paris Road and the Business Loop Road Safety Audits conducted by the City of Columbia rated this intersection as—checks notes—a “complete mess” so we are thrilled it’s finally getting some attention.
The full intersection plan will be available to view online and at the upcoming public meetings but the short version is that the grade on the Business Loop will be raised so that Business Loop and Paris Road actually meet—you know, like with normal intersections. So no longer will you need to wander through parking lots or neighborhoods to reach your destination.
Great question. They are fixing those too!
The Paris Road bridge will be removed—it’s no longer needed if Business Loop and Paris Road are on the same grade. That’ll be a huge project so prep for detours once it’s scheduled. But once it’s removed, it means that section of Business Loop is now wide enough for sidewalks and bike lanes—or other creative alternatives to make space for bikers and walkers.
The COLT Railroad bridge will also be removed but the track bed will be preserved, widened, and fortified, albeit without the railroad tracks. But again, the old railroad bed will now be on the same level as Business Loop.
Wondering why you don’t see this new crossing on MODOT’s rendering? It’s because it’s still in the planning stage. Columbia Parks and Recreation is currently seeking input on railbanking the COLT line as the first step to a rails-to-trails project. In addition, the city is in the middle of the big Reconnecting Communities Grant planning process so we’ve got an engineering team working on some options to present to folks at our public input meeting on March 19.
We’re not used to this type of attention here on The Loop so we’re very excited to have this MODOT project opening up so many possibilities for us!
