Roads to Progress Paved with Intentions

Northwest Arkansas

by Talk Business & Politics ([email protected]) October 27, 2003 12:00 am 57 views 

Three proposed area roads – the U.S. Highway 412 bypass, the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport (XNA) access road and the Bella Vista bypass – are either up in the air or awaiting legislation from Missouri: r

  • Randy Ort, public affairs officer for the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department, said the U.S. 412 bypass is still in the planning stages. It will be primarily designed to circumnavigate Springdale’s east-west traffic congestion.r

    There are preferred routes at both ends and at least four middle routes in consideration. With that much left in doubt, however, it’s still not clear when the project might start, although the tab is expected to exceed $200 million.r

  • The XNA access road, currently a private project, will eventually tie into the U.S. 412 bypass but is contingent on selection of the Springdale bypass corridor being finalized.r

    “We’ve put all of our work on hold pending their moving forward on their project,” said Scott Van Laningham, executive director and CEO of the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport Authority.r

    Van Laningham said that the latest cost estimates for a road connecting Interstate 540 and the airport was $45 million.r

  • The route has been chosen for the Bella Vista bypass — a 19-mile extension of U.S. Highway 71 to the west of town, 15 miles of which will be built in Arkansas. The hang up is the four miles that are to be built across the border. Missouri law prohibits toll roads so the options are to get a third-party bond backer or change the Missouri legislation. r

    An investment grade study by HNTB Corp. of Kansas City to determine the feasibility of using tolls found “that a third-party [bond backer] isn’t a very attractive option,” Ort said.r

    Without the backing of the states, the bonds would have a lower rating and higher interest rates. The study said if Missouri changes its laws, the bonding capacity for the project will be $130 million-$140 million, with a projected building cost of $190 million-$200 million for both states. r