Preparations started Monday (August 10) for road construction on Highway 71 south of Maryville at the site of the new Evergy natural gas plant.
A news release from the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) says construction of the first J-turn at 71 and 340th Street will start next Monday (August 17).
The MoDOT news release says drivers "at a J-turn intersection turn right in the same direction of traffic, merge into the passing lane, and then make a U-turn in the direction they intend to travel."
Highway 71 in both directions will be narrowed to one lane and access to 340th Street will be limited to vehicles up to 11 feet in width.
Weather permitting, the project will be completed by early November 2026.
Evergy is paying the cost of the project, which MoDOT says is $3,067,645.65.
The MoDOT news release also says the project is to accommodate an increase of approximately 400 vehicles per day during the construction of their new natural gas plant.
Click HERE to be directed to the MoDOT website for more information.
Click HERE to read and download the March 2025 news release from Evergy about the natural gas plant.
