SOUTH HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Last week South Hutchinson City Manager Joseph Turner expressed that the City of South Hutchinson was against any changes to the Woodie Seat Freeway that would place the road at ground level, thus eliminating the bridges over both the Union Pacific and K and O railroads.
Turner and the city council feel that such a design would hamper response times in emergency situations and cause economic harm to his commuity. He also stated in the letter that travel times would be delayed for many who commute between the two cities as train traffic increases along with the length of trains. He says it will also hurt Hutchinson’s downtown business because it will steer motorists over to the 17th and 30th avenue corridors.
The City of Hutchinson is spending funds to study if it would be possible to bring the Woodie Seat down to ground level crossing the two railroads.
Union Pacific has seen an increase in the number and size of trains through Hutchinson with some freights reaching more than 12,000 feet in length. The trains move through the city at around 30 MPH. The K and O transports mainly grain unit trains that are up to 115 cars in length. Those trains move through the city at around 10-15 MPH.
No word on when the city will get the results from the study on that particular option. The letter is posted as a pair of pictures below.
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