State's first diverging diamond interchange opens
ELK CITY — Oklahoma's first diverging diamond interchange is now open at the interchange between Interstate 40 and State Highway 6/ Main Street in Elk City.
A diverging diamond interchange differs from a traditional interchange in that traffic is redirected to the opposite side of the road prior to traversing the highway bridge crossing the interstate.
The configuration is designed to permit freeflowing left turns onto the interstate. Two phase traffic signals are installed at the roadway crossover points.
Even though the interchange is now open, construction will continue in the area through winter so motorists are urged to use caution as they learn the new configuration, state transportation officials said.
“Drivers on I -40 lanes and ramps as well as State Highway 6 lanes may experience intermittent closures as work continues,” officials said.
The City of Elk City is partnering with t he Oklahoma Department of Transportation
to fund aesthetics work on the highway bridge.
The first diverging diamond interchange in the nation was constructed to link Interstate 44 and the Kansas Expressway in Springfield, Missouri, in 2009, state transportation officials said.
Since then, nearly 100 of the interchanges have been built nationwide.
The design has been gaining popularity because studies show it creates safer, less congested interchanges and reduces travel times, and the interchanges are viewed positively by motorists, officials said.
Oklahoma is planning to construct a second diverging diamond interchange between Interstate 35 a nd Waterloo Road near Edmond. That project is expected togo out for bids in federal Fiscal Year 2023.