With some work beginning soon to ultimately demolish and rebuild the Kansas Turnpike’s Emporia service center, a special event is coming for the area’s other service exit.
The Turnpike Authority has been working with Love’s Travel Stops on significant renovations, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place at 10 am Thursday at the Matfield Green service exit, mile marker 97. The event will highlight an interior remodel as well as an updated layout to improve both the traffic flow and the shopping experience.
Similar activities are taking place this month at KTA service exits in Belle Plaine, Topeka and Towanda. All the ribbon-cutting ceremonies will include donations to local Children’s Miracle Network operations.
Just northeast of Emporia, work is tentatively set to begin at the mile marker 132 service exit next week as current restaurants, Subway and Taco John’s, will close ahead of the demolition phase. Eventually, the service area will include one building instead of two. Current plans include a Taco John’s and, possibly, a “crispy chicken” restaurant, as well as a QuikTrip-style convenience area with showers for commercial truck drivers and an improved traffic layout. Fuel and restroom services will remain open during the 15-month, $15 million project.
Separately, the KTA has awarded a contract for a maintenance project affecting the highway in Lyon and Wabaunsee counties.
Van Kirk Brothers of Sutton, Nebraska, bid over $4.1 million to increase drainage capacity. Van Kirk will use traditional and trenchless construction work after a hydrological study. Specific locations have not been announced. Work should be done by June 2027.
