The Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department is taking steps to pave the last gravel state highway, according to highway officials.
About 8 miles of gravel road stretches north from Crawford County into Washington County, ending at the southern border of Devil's Den State Park, said Randy Ort, department spokesman. He said the road, Arkansas 220, is the only state highway that is still gravel.
"A lot of people don't know that we have an unpaved state highway," Ort said.
The department launched a program in 1985 to pave all state highways by 1995, Ort said.
Ort said the department accomplished its goal. However, in In 1998, however, it took ownership of the unpaved Arkansas 220.
The road was originally owned by the U.S. Agriculture Department's Forest Service, Ort said. Over time it became two county roads, one in Washington County and the other in Crawford County.
There had been attempts since the 1970s to pass ownership to the Transportation Department, Ort said. However, he said the attempts always fell through until the 1990s.
"Part of our role in the state is to provide access to state parks," Ort said. "This is a route that provides access."
The department has estimated the cost for the project to be between $12 million and $14 million.
The department applied for a Forest Service grant to fund the project, Ort said. The federal agency awarded $4 million for the project earlier this year, Ort said. The Transportation Department will match the grant with $1 million.
Results from an environmental study will be needed before the department can decide which phase of work will be first, Ort said.
A request for proposals has been released for a survey of the bat population along the route, Ort said. He said it is known that three endangered species of bat are found in the region, including gray, Ozark big-eared and Indiana bats.
Tim Scott, Devil's Den State Park assistant superintendent, said there are some caves inside and outside the park near Arkansas 220.
"There is a limestone cave inside the park within 50 to 100 yards of the existing highway," Scott said.
Scott said he couldn't say whether any of the endangered bat populations are living in the caves near the road at the moment. He said the park tries not to disturb the bat populations because of the risk of spreading white nose syndrome, he said.
The syndrome is a disease that affects hibernating bats. State caves, with the exception of show caves, have been closed to decrease the risk of spreading the fatal disease to bat populations.
"Bats are pretty important to the ecosystem," Scott said, "Several bats are found in the population at Devil's Den ... We are concerned about keeping those populations as healthy as possible."
Blake Sasse, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission nongame mammal biologist, said that it is unlikely that paving the road will disturb the bat populations.
"The primary threat to our three currently endangered bats are disturbances that happen inside of the caves," Sasse said. "That sort of disturbance is really why they became endangered."
If a cave was found with an endangered species, the most important thing would be protecting the entrance, Sasse said.
"If it was near the road, you may want to work with landowners to put a fence or gate on the cave to keep people out of the cave," Sasse said.
Scott said that the road could be beneficial for the park as long as the bats are protected.
"It would tie in existing pavement in Crawford County," Scott said. "Part of that road is pretty rough, it doesn't get a lot of traffic now."
Metro on 07/15/2014