Notice to Media

Ambitious Interstate Rehabilitation Program

Will Rebuild 380 Miles of Arkansas Highways

LITTLE ROCK (11-9) — Three hundred eighty miles of Interstate highways in Arkansas will be rebuilt during the five-year Interstate Rehabilitation Program (IRP) that is now underway. “This is the most ambitious highway rehabilitation project ever undertaken in Arkansas, and will result in a multitude of benefits for all Arkansans and for others who use the Interstate highways in the state,” said Dan Flowers, director of the Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD), which is administering the massive program. “The benefits of this historic undertaking include safer travel, earlier project completion, less wear-and-tear on vehicles and more efficient movement of goods and services. All Arkansans will feel the benefit of the program in many ways” said Flowers.

“An example of the massive scope of the program,” Flowers said, “can be seen in a comparison of the amount of work done on Interstate highways prior to the IRP and the amount being undertaken as part of the program.” For example:

•With the IRP, the Highway and Transportation Department will average about 125 miles of Interstate reconstruction in each of the next three years compared to a rate of 15 miles re-done in each of previous years.

All 284 miles of Interstate 40 were originally constructed at a cost of less than $1 million per mile, yet current reconstruction costs will be between $2 million and $3 million per mile.
It took about 20 years and $837 million to construct the 542 miles of Interstates in Arkansas, excluding Interstate 530 and the new section of Interstate 540. It will take approximately five years and $950 million to reconstruct 69 percent of those Interstate miles with the Interstate Rehabilitation Program.

“By 2002, all 380 miles of construction work will be underway, with completion scheduled by 2005.” Flowers said. “Right now, as the 2000 holiday season approaches, there are already 12 IRP construction sites throughout the state and motorists need to know that delays are to be expected in those areas.” Flowers also noted, “the AHTD is committed to keeping the traveling public informed and aware of the scope and location of the construction sites through a multi-faceted education effort that will utilize a variety of communication tools.” Currently, details of specific construction sites and lane closures can be found on the ROADS page at www.arkansashighways.com or by calling the Department’s Public Affairs office.

The Interstate Rehabilitation Program is possible through an innovative financing concept known as GARVEE bonds, which stands for Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicles. The Arkansas State Highway Commission will be able to use future federal funds to retire $575 million worth of bonds as passed by the Arkansas General Assembly and approved 4-to-1 by Arkansas voters in 1999. Repayment will also come from required state matching funds and the proceeds from a phased-in 4-cent-a-gallon increase in the state tax on diesel fuel.

For more information, motorists may contact the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department at 501-569-2227 or visit our website at www.arkansashighways.com

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