My study area encapsulates the northwest corner of the Downtown Loop. Both historically and today, this area has been an important junction for various transportation routes. Due to the area’s challenging terrain, being on the edge of both Quality Hill and the floodplains of the Missouri and Kaw rivers, these facilities have not been simple. These connections have had to bridge and tunnel their way across the landscape. The most striking example is the Intercity Viaduct.

The Intercity Viaduct was a wide toll viaduct that carried pedestrian and horse-drawn traffic across the West Bottoms and the Kaw river, linking the downtowns of the two Kansas Cities. When I-70 was constructed, the alignment was generally followed, but reconstructed to Interstate standard.

To continue the interstate through Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, the interstate plowed its way through what was formerly 6th Street Trafficway. In the series of photos above, note the building in red for comparison.

In my series of figure grounds, there are a few things to note. First, the thinning out of buildings, and the partial rebound in recent years. Also take note of key transportation constructions, such as the original and replacement Buck O’Neil bridges and the Lewis and Clark Viaduct.

One last transportation history element to mention is the 8th Street Tunnel. This tunnel served as a link from the West Bottoms up to Quality Hill, and replaced the steep and dangerous 9th Street Incline. In my figure grounds, this is visible as a widened section of street towards the center-right of the study area that later becomes converted to pedestrian space.