Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Roads Are Messy - Slow Down!

As motorists drive the interstates this summer, they had better be ready to slow down and look at a lot of orange barrels.

This is because large sections of Arkansas's interstate highway system are under repair.

Dan Flowers, director of the Arkansas State Highway Commission, said the commission is in the second of five years work on the interstates, primarily I-30, I-40 and I-630.

More than 100 miles have been rehabilitated, with about 280 more to be done by 2004.

This is the most ambitious such program in the state's history, and because of it there are several simultaneous construction zones along the interstates, with the road conditions changing constantly, Flowers said.

What this translates into is drivers need to give themselves more time to reach their destination as they will run into places on the interstate where they will have to slow down considerably, and possibly stop.

In this area, along I-30, drivers can be ready to deal with orange barrels from Hope to past Malvern.

On 1-40, there will be a seven-mile stretch from mile marker 175-182, and a 12-mile stretch from mile marker 228-240.

There will also be some construction along I-55, between West Memphis and Blytheville.

However, the other major work area will be on I-630,where construction will be almost constant between Conway and Fort Smith.

The speed limit in these construction zones is 60 miles per hour, with some places having flaggers warning motorists to slow down even more.

When done, more than 60 percent of Arkansas's interstate highways will have been rebuilt.

The construction is being done using money from a bond issue passed by the voters in Arkansas two years ago. It is allowing highway workers to rehabilitate about 125 miles of interstate per year for five years, instead of the usual 12-15 miles done annually.

As of now, there are 22 construction sites being operated by the AHTD, with plans in the works to start 35-40 in the next two years, so the work can be finished by 2005, as projected.

When I-40 was first built, it was done at a cost of less than $1 million per mile. However, the reconstruction costs today will be about $2 or $2 million per mile.

It took about 20 years for the state to build the interstate system originally. This was done at a cost of $837 million and built 542 miles of highway. This, though, doesn't include the newest section, I-540 between Fort Smith and Fayetteville.

However, making the repairs and rehabilitating the interstate will cost about $950 million, and will only encompass 380 miles.

The financing, after the bond passed, came through GARVEE (Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicles) bonds.

This Highway Commission is using future federal funds to retire $575 million in bonds passed in 1999. The repayment also comes from required state matching funds and a phased-in diesel tax of four cents.

In Arkansas, an average of 22 fatalities and 940 injuries occur annually in work zone accidents, with almost five times as many accidents occurring on weekdays. The main reasons for the mishaps is speeding, and last chance merging, along with drivers simply not paying attention to what's going on around them.

Along with planning ahead and allowing more time to make trips this summer, motorists may want to think about taking alternate routes to their destination, and avoiding the construction zones altogether.

Arkansas has some of the most scenic state highways in the nation, and though the speed limit is 55 mph on them, there will also be fewer interruptions because of construction being done.

But, for those who just have to use the interstate, the Highway Commission has a website giving information on where construction is underway. The web address is: www.ArkansasInterstates.com.