Arkansas News Bureau
LITTLE ROCK — Central Arkansas transportation officials heard Wednesday that bids for the first of four area projects to be funded with $14.2 million in federal stimulus money is expected to be awarded in July.
Engineer Mike Batie of Metroplan, the regional planning agency for Faulkner, Lonoke, Pulaski and Saline counties, told officials attending an agency meeting that the bids, to be let July 8, would be for a railroad overpass on Salem Road in Conway.
The Arkansas Highway Commission this month accepted bids totaling $21.2 million on 27 highway resurfacing projects that will be funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Bids on 33 more projects — including the reconfiguring of the congested interchange connecting Interstates 430 and 630 interchange with an estimated cost of $18 million — are to be let May 20, spokesman Randy Ort of the state Highway and Transportation Department said Wednesday.
The highway department is to receive about $351 million in stimulus money to fund 103 road and bridge projects.
During Wednesday’s Metroplan meeting, Batie said plans are nearly complete on the Conway railroad overpass project and the necessary environmental studies have been completed and approved.
Bid for a roundabout on Pike Avenue in North Little Rock are to be let Aug. 19, and a Dec. 9 date has been set to let bids on projects to improve Brockington Road in Sherwood and Military Road in Benton, he said.
Batie said there are some concerns that still need to be addressed on the Pike Avenue project and some right-of-way still needs to be acquired for the Brockington Road project.
Environmental studies are still under way on the Military Road project, he said.
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On the Net:
Information on state projects funded by federal stimulus money
www.arkansashighways.com
