Notice to Media

Additional Lanes to Open on Highway 412

LITTLE ROCK (5-17) – Two additional lanes of Highway 412 near Nob Hill will be opened to traffic on Friday, May 19, according to AHTD Director Dan Flowers.

Traffic changes will be made between mid-morning and mid-afternoon to avoid interference with morning and afternoon commuter traffic. The additional lanes will provide two lanes of eastbound traffic from just east of Washington County Road 399 (a short distance west of Beaver Lake) to its connection with the existing two-lane highway at Washington County Road 391 east of Nob Hill.

Traffic will still be restricted to one westbound lane while the final surfacing is taking place on the westbound lanes. The final surfacing work should be complete within two weeks after the opening of the new eastbound lanes of highway, at which time the area will be opened to two lanes of travel in each direction.

When complete, this section of Highway 412 will be a partially controlled access highway. Intersections with county roads along this section are at-grade crossings permitting access across and between the lanes of Highway 412. Private and commercial driveways also intersect directly with the lanes of Highway 412 at various locations along the divided portion of the route but access between the lanes of Highway 412 is not permitted at those locations.

Although both sets of lanes on the four-lane divided highway will be carrying traffic, work involving additional surfacing and the placement of permanent pavement markings will still remain.

Motorists are urged to use caution as they travel through the construction zone and during adjustment to the changes in traffic patterns as the road is converted from a two-way two-lane road to a four lane divided highway.

The Arkansas Highway Commission awarded a $10,944,997 contract for this project to Elmo Greer and Sons, Inc. of London, Kentucky in July 1998. The 3.3-mile project included construction of the paved roadway and the removal of the old bridge structure over Beaver Lake.

The new bridges over Beaver Lake, along with the grading of the approaches to the bridges, were completed under a previous $9,717,039 contact awarded to Jensen Construction Co. of Des Moines, Iowa.

An additional construction project is also underway west of the divided four-lane roadway that is being opened on Friday. That project extends from the Highway 265 Spur in Springdale eastward to just east of Washington County Road 399. When completed, it will provide a 5-lane roadway. The Arkansas Highway Commission awarded a $2,171,018 contract for the project to APAC-Arkansas, McClinton-Anchor Division, of Fayetteville, Arkansas. The 5.8-mile section of five-lane highway is anticipated to be available for use by traffic later this year.

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