The Arkansas Department of Transportation announced in early July that it was moving into the next phase of development for the construction of Interstate 49 from Highway 22 in Sebastian County to Interstate 40 in Crawford County.
Here are five things you should know about the project:
How we got here
The Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department conducted a state feasibility study for an interstate corridor that would parallel US 71 from north to south and connect Shreveport, Louisiana, with Kansas City, Missouri.
The study was prepared in response to Section 166 of the Federal Roads Act of 1987 in accordance with the 1997 draft environmental impact statement.
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“The purpose of the study was to determine the economic feasibility of a fully controlled access road according to interstate standards,” says the 1997 statement.
According to the 1988 study, each federal state took responsibility for the development of the corridors.
The impact
Several benefits were identified in the study, including the corridor, which “encourages the further growth of the region’s tourism and leisure industries”.
At that time it was also said that the entire corridor would save three hours of travel time with high priority. The 11-hour route would become an 8-hour route with the proposed motorway.
The price tag
The work to be done is approximately 23.6 miles long and has an estimated cost of $ 787 million.
Implementation of the project will require significant additional capital resources, according to the Interstate 49 Alternative Delivery Study.
There is a pre-financing gap of around $ 700 million. An electronic toll charging $ 2 for the duration of the renewal was discussed and investigated but ultimately deemed impracticable. Estimated revenues fell short of estimated costs, with a total gap of between $ 513 million and $ 803 million.
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What was completed in Arkansas?
I-49 was completed in the Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers area and Fort Smith. And between Texarkana and the Louisiana state line.
The expansion will connect I-40 and Highway 549, which serve the Fort Chaffee area and enable efficient north-south passenger and cargo movements, according to the Alternative Delivery Study.
I-49 will connect western Arkansas to the larger Interstate Highway system, including Interstate 30 in Arkansas, Interstate 10 and Interstate 20 in Louisiana, and Interstate 29 and Interstate 70 in Missouri when completed.
What happens next?
The next phase of project development involves completing and obtaining agency approvals for the 1997 FEIS re-evaluation, preparing necessary agency building permits, and developing the final design and construction plans for a Hwy facility. 22 to I-40, which does not include tolls.
A step-by-step construction approach can be used if two of the last four lanes of the facility can be built in the first phase due to financing problems.
In the next phase of project development, final decisions about the step building approach are made.
There is no fixed start of construction.
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