Highway Department Unveils Eastern Corridor Route

At A Glance

A Wider 540

Widening Interstate 540 from four to six lanes between Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Wedington Drive in Fayetteville is complete. Plans call for 26 miles of the highway through the metro area to be widened from four to six lanes and improvements done on nine interchanges. Money for widening is expected to come from a half-cent statewide sales tax passed by voters in November and dedicated to highway improvements. Interchange improvements will be paid for with bond money approved in 2011.

Source: Staff Report

Web Watch

Proposed Route

A map of the proposed route is available at nwaonline.com

The Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department released its preferred route for an eastern corridor from northern Springdale to Rogers.

Construction might not start on the corridor for several years but eventually Arkansas 265 will be four lanes from south Fayetteville to Rogers.

“The purpose of the proposed project is to improve north-south connectivity and enhance mobility for travelers in the Northwest Arkansas metro area,” Highway Commissioner Dick Trammel, said in a news release.

The preferred alignment will extend Arkansas 265 north from Wagon Wheel Road in Springdale to New Hope Road in Rogers, using a combination of improvements to existing routes and new construction. It will begin at Arkansas 264 and continue north roughly along Old Wire Road. At Frisco Cemetery Road, a new road will continue north until it connects with South 1st Street in Rogers. The route will continue along South First Street and end at New Hope Road.

The Rogers master street plan recommended the route follow Old Wire and 1st Street. The route through town will likely push more traffic past three schools along 1st Street.

South of the county line, Springdale would use the current alignment of Arkansas 265 but part of the highway north of Randall Wobbe Lane could be moved. Arkansas 265 stops running north and jogs west at Arkansas 264 in northern Springdale.

“I believe the 265 project will create a valuable north to south corridor,” said Springdale Mayor Doug Sprouse. “My question is what alignment will be used south of 264.”

The highway department has proposed relocating Arkansas 265 north of Randall Wobbe Road, running along Jefferson Street then veering back to the east where the street ends. The proposal calls for the new Arkansas 265 to connect to its original path north of Arkansas 264.

Construction is ongoing on Arkansas 265 in Fayetteville where intersections are being improved and two lanes added.

Planning and environmental studies began in 2009 and included a series of public input sessions. The criteria used for designating the preferred alignment included cost effectiveness, overall impact, and public input, according to the highway department.

A traffic corridor to ease congestion on U.S. 71B and provide another north-south route east of the metro area has been on wish lists since at least 1973.

In the region’s long-term highway plan, the corridor is designated as a major artery. Traffic models have shown the road would get a lot of use.

There are three north-south corridors in the region: Interstate 540, U.S. 71B and Arkansas 265.

After further survey and design work is completed, a public hearing will be scheduled to share details on the design and proposed right of way limits.

Estimates that are several years old for a four-lane extension from Arkansas 265 to Rogers range from $71 million to $91 million. Two lanes would cost an estimated $32 million to $49 million.

About $20 million has been identified in the 2013-16 Northwest Arkansas transportation improvement plan for the project, according to regional planners. That money could be used for design, engineering, right of way acquisition and utility relocation.

Two other routes were considered during the study period, including a slightly more easterly route that could have included the Cross Hollow area. That route was not popular among residents and would have been much more expensive because of the rough, steep terrain in the area. The Cross Hollow area also has several historically significant sites dating to the Civil War when troops camped in the area.

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