Beginning work continues on intersection project

Contract may be ready this year

BENTONVILLE — Obtaining rights of way for intersection changes at North Walton and Tiger boulevards is under way, and the City Council may consider a construction contract by the end of the year, according to a city transportation official.

The intersection also includes Northwest 12th Street, which is on the west side of North Walton Boulevard. Tiger Boulevard is on the east side.

The work will move traffic more efficiently through the often congested intersection, officials said.

Work will include a 400-foot left turn lane on Tiger Boulevard and a 350-foot left turn lane on Northwest 12th Street, which is longer than previous designs.

All four corners will receive new crosswalks. There will also be a dedicated rightturn lane on Northwest 12th Street to head south and one to head east.

The intersection is about one-half mile west of Lincoln Junior High School, Sugar Creek Elementary School and Thomas Jefferson Elementary School and sees more congestion after school lets out each day.

The project will shorten

the commute for parents picking up their children from school, said Mayor Bob McCaslin.

Tiger Boulevard and Northwest 12th Street each have one lane entering the intersection. Vehicles back up when motorists making an unprotected left turn need to wait for a break in traffic.

“There’s a lot of people who cue up and wait, particularly westbound Tiger almost back to Bella Vista Road,” he said.

Bella Vista Road is almost one-fourth mile east of North Walton Boulevard.

The intersection sees about 18,000 vehicles drive through it on North Walton Boulevard and about 6,900 vehicles on Tiger Boulevard, Birge said, citing Arkansas Department of Transportation numbers.

The City Council approved spending $1.1 million from the Surface Transportation Block Grant on Tuesday, which will cover 80 percent of the project cost.

The city is required to pay the other 20 percent. The city will use bonds and money it receives annually from the Arkansas Transportation Department to pay for its share, Birge said.

The grant is part of a federal program administered by the Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission. The commission selects regionally significant projects for the money to support. The money is then funneled through Arkansas Department of Transportation.

“Typically, there’s more need than funding,” said Tim Conklin, assistant director of the commission.

The commission receives between $7.2 million and $7.5 million annually to allocate to projects in the region. Much of the money goes toward projects on major routes that improve mobility, provide north-south connections and help move traffic through intersections, Conklin said.

The $1.1 million comes from three grants the city received for the project over the past four years.

“In order for me to spend that money, I had to show that revenue coming in,” Dennis Birge, city transportation director, said about the budget adjustment approved Tuesday.

Part of the money is needed for right-of-way acquisition on 10 tracks of land, Birge said. All property owners have been contacted, but no land has been bought yet.

The right-of-way acquisition process could take a “few months to a year” depending on negotiations, according to Birge. The next step will be to move utilities then construction can start.

Birge said he’s hoping to have a construction contract for City Council approval by the end of the year. Construction will likely take a year and a half.

on North Walton Boulevard