ArDOT to showcase NWA highway projects supported by sales tax

The Arkansas Department of Transportation (ArDOT) will host two more events to commemorate the $1.8 billion Connecting Arkansas Program that provided funding for 31 projects and 200 miles of roadway and bridge improvements. The next Tip of the CAP event is set for 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday (March 9) at Thaden Fieldhouse in Bentonville.

In 2012, Arkansas voters approved a half-cent sales tax to support the program. The tax that was set to end in 2023 was permanently extended by voters in November 2020.

In Northwest Arkansas, the 10-year program supported nine projects, including the more than $220 million Bella Vista Bypass, or the Missouri-Arkansas Connector, the missing link that filled the nearly 20-mile gap in the 265 miles of interstate between Fort Smith and Kansas City, Mo. The new Interstate 49 segment opened to traffic in October 2021.

The Tip of the CAP event at 2205 S.W. I St. in Bentonville will include state and area officials joined by Arkansas Highway Commission Vice Chairman Philip Taldo and Commissioners Marie Holder and Keith Gibson. ArDOT previously hosted events on the CAP program in southern and northeastern Arkansas. The last Tip of the CAP is planned for central Arkansas later this year.

“Thanks to the support of the Arkansas State Legislature, the governor and ultimately the approval by Arkansas voters, the last 10 years have generated $1.8 billion, funding 31 projects and 200 miles of roadway and bridge improvements,” said ArDOT Director Lorie Tudor. “Those projects include some important highway improvements in Northwest Arkansas. We are excited to showcase and to celebrate these projects and the progress that has been made in improving traveler safety and promoting Northwest Arkansas’ job growth and economy.”