ARDOT kicks off National Work Zone Awareness Week

KUAR | By Nathan Treece, Seth Hooker

The Arkansas Department of Transportation, or ARDOT, kicked off National Work Zone Awareness Week by debuting some further actions the department is taking to keep crews safe on state highways.

Marie Holder, an Arkansas Highway Commission member, said the department continues to work towards zero work zone fatalities.

“Since 1970, 60 ARDOT employees have been lost in work-related accidents,” Holder said. “That’s 60 employees—and friends—who did not come home at the end of their work day. These employees made the ultimate sacrifice while performing their job duties to keep the road safe for the people of Arkansas.”

ARDOT kicks off National Work Zone Awareness Week

Nathan Treece/Little Rock Public Radio

Traffic cones bear the names of Arkansas construction workers killed while on the job on state highways.

ArDOT kicks off $310M in road projects in Benton, Washington counties

by Jeff Della Rosa (JDellaRosa@nwabj.com)

Northwest Arkansas will add about 11 miles of interstate-style freeway to the region when nearly $310 million in highway projects are completed over the next three years.

On Wednesday (April 17), Arkansas Department of Transportation (ArDOT) officials and area leaders gathered at Northwest Arkansas National Airport (XNA) in Highfill to break ground on phase two of the Springdale Northern Bypass and a connecting road from the bypass to XNA. Combined, the contract values of the two projects exceed $308.46 million.

“Both of these projects represent a total cost of $410 million,” said ArDOT Director Lorie Tudor. “Of that is right-of-way, design and construction. Construction is $310 million, so that just gives you an idea of how much it costs to get a project ready to break ground on.”

ArDOT kicks off $310M in road projects in Benton, Washington counties

Lorie Tudor, director of the Arkansas Department of Transportation, speaks at the groundbreaking ceremony for the Springdale Northern Bypass and Northwest Arkansas National Airport connector projects.

ArDOT awards nearly $15M for new EV charging stations

by Jeff Della Rosa (JDellaRosa@nwabj.com)

The Arkansas Department of Transportation (ArDOT) will provide $14.91 million to build 19 electric vehicle charging stations along Arkansas highways and interstates.

The money comes from the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act or Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. In February 2022, the U.S. Departments of Transportation and Energy released plans to use nearly $5 billion made available by the law to build a national electric vehicle charging network by 2030. Arkansas will receive up to $54.12 million over five years for its network.

The federal infrastructure law established the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program to help states build a network of 500,000 charging stations along alternative fuel corridors, primarily interstates. According to Arkansas’ charging infrastructure plan, it would need to build 15 charging stations to meet the minimum requirements for the NEVI program. It requires a public station every 50 miles along alternative fuel corridors. Arkansas has five existing charging stations that meet the NEVI program requirements and 34 stations that were identified as upgradable to meet the requirements.

ArDOT awards nearly $15M for new EV charging stations

ArDOT to receive $91 million in federal funding for highway projects

by Jeff Della Rosa (JDellaRosa@nwabj.com)

The Arkansas Department of Transportation (ArDOT) will receive an additional $91 million for six projects, according to a Wednesday (March 13) news release. The money comprises congressionally directed spending and community project funding.

According to the release, the money was secured by members of the state’s congressional delegation, including U.S. Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark.; U.S. Reps. Rick Crawford, R-Jonesboro; Bruce Westerman, R-Hot Springs; and Steve Womack, R-Rogers. The money was included in the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development appropriation for federal fiscal year 2024, which started Oct. 1.

Following are the amounts and projects the money will support:

• $67 million for Interstate 49 between Barling and Alma.

• $6 million for the future Interstate 57 from Walnut Ridge to the Missouri state line.

• $5 million for the Highway 10 Greenwood Bypass.

• $5 million for Highway 82 corridor improvements in Ashley, Chicot, Columbia and Union counties.

• $5 million for U.S. Highway 412 corridor improvements at Interstate 49.

• $3 million for Highway 412 corridor improvements in northern Arkansas.

ArDOT to receive $91 million in federal funding for highway projects