Proposed US 412 Upgrade

[sprjus4]

Cool, thanks for the map!  Saw the 540 shields, then looked at the legend date (2008); this thing has certainly been in the works for a while!  Any timetable to complete the western segment back to existing 412?

Not at this point.  It was one of the projects on the continuation of the 1/2 cent sales tax, but no timelines were included in that statewide marketing push for the ballot initiative.  The western leg will undoubtedly be completed before the eastern leg, though, as it's shorter and just has one interchange with US-412 before it completes.  Can't wait for it to be done.  It'll knock a chunk off my trips to Benton County bypassing AR-112.  We'll see which comes first, AR-112 widening north of US-412, or the western Springdale Bypass leg.

Looks like a wish list from some bureaucrat.

NWA: Plan ahead for future population growth by building out main arteries before traffic problems arise.

Nashville: Let the underbuilt freeway system get completely overrun before trying to fix it.

NWA:  Tax and spend whilst lining pockets and greasing palms.
Nashville:  Conserve funds and allocate as needed with a rainy day fund.

This is about a Beautiful Toll Road?! 

??? 

[US71]

Cool, thanks for the map!  Saw the 540 shields, then looked at the legend date (2008); this thing has certainly been in the works for a while!  Any timetable to complete the western segment back to existing 412? 

FWIW, a freeway up the mountain to NWA from FT Smith has been proposed  since the 1960's. I had a map that showed a proposed highway as an extension of I-540.

[MikieTimT]

Cool, thanks for the map!  Saw the 540 shields, then looked at the legend date (2008); this thing has certainly been in the works for a while!  Any timetable to complete the western segment back to existing 412? 

FWIW, a freeway up the mountain to NWA from FT Smith has been proposed  since the 1960's. I had a map that showed a proposed highway as an extension of I-540.

And for a few years, that's exactly what it was!  Kind of still is, until the BVB wraps up in October.

[sparker]

Cool, thanks for the map!  Saw the 540 shields, then looked at the legend date (2008); this thing has certainly been in the works for a while!  Any timetable to complete the western segment back to existing 412? 

FWIW, a freeway up the mountain to NWA from FT Smith has been proposed  since the 1960's. I had a map that showed a proposed highway as an extension of I-540.

Not in the least bit surprised; the US 71 corridor from KC to Shreveport (with a split south from there to Houston and NOLA) was one of the most glaring omissions of the original Interstate network, likely because of the difficulty of construction in the Ozarks and Ouachitas.  And not at all ironically, when the high priority corridor concept came about with 1991's ISTEA, it was the first corridor to be designated -- fortunately, I-49 was already a reality within LA, so it became a logical extension of that.  It's likely that if the longer I-69 had not been conceived and legislated, Shreveport (or Texarkana)-Houston would have been added to be mix as an independent corridor (I-47?). 

[froggie]

Not in the least bit surprised; the US 71 corridor from KC to Shreveport (with a split south from there to Houston and NOLA) was one of the most glaring omissions of the original Interstate network, likely because of the difficulty of construction in the Ozarks and Ouachitas.  And not at all ironically, when the high priority corridor concept came about with 1991's ISTEA, it was the first corridor to be designated -- fortunately, I-49 was already a reality within LA, so it became a logical extension of that.  It's likely that if the longer I-69 had not been conceived and legislated, Shreveport (or Texarkana)-Houston would have been added to be mix as an independent corridor (I-47?). 

Worth noting that the 48K system studied in the 1940s (approximately 50% larger than the system Congress initially approved) still did not include US 71 between Shreveport and Joplin.

Translation:  US 71 really was that minor back when the Interstate system was planned.  Nevermind that NWA was basically a backwater back in those days.  Didn't really pick up until Sam Walton did his thing.

[US71]

Not in the least bit surprised; the US 71 corridor from KC to Shreveport (with a split south from there to Houston and NOLA) was one of the most glaring omissions of the original Interstate network, likely because of the difficulty of construction in the Ozarks and Ouachitas.  And not at all ironically, when the high priority corridor concept came about with 1991's ISTEA, it was the first corridor to be designated -- fortunately, I-49 was already a reality within LA, so it became a logical extension of that.  It's likely that if the longer I-69 had not been conceived and legislated, Shreveport (or Texarkana)-Houston would have been added to be mix as an independent corridor (I-47?). 

Worth noting that the 48K system studied in the 1940s (approximately 50% larger than the system Congress initially approved) still did not include US 71 between Shreveport and Joplin.

Translation:  US 71 really was that minor back when the Interstate system was planned.  Nevermind that NWA was basically a backwater back in those days.  Didn't really pick up until Sam Walton did his thing.

and to a lesser drgree JB HUnt and Tyson.

[sparker]

Not in the least bit surprised; the US 71 corridor from KC to Shreveport (with a split south from there to Houston and NOLA) was one of the most glaring omissions of the original Interstate network, likely because of the difficulty of construction in the Ozarks and Ouachitas.  And not at all ironically, when the high priority corridor concept came about with 1991's ISTEA, it was the first corridor to be designated -- fortunately, I-49 was already a reality within LA, so it became a logical extension of that.  It's likely that if the longer I-69 had not been conceived and legislated, Shreveport (or Texarkana)-Houston would have been added to be mix as an independent corridor (I-47?). 

Worth noting that the 48K system studied in the 1940s (approximately 50% larger than the system Congress initially approved) still did not include US 71 between Shreveport and Joplin.

Translation:  US 71 really was that minor back when the Interstate system was planned.  Nevermind that NWA was basically a backwater back in those days.  Didn't really pick up until Sam Walton did his thing.

and to a lesser drgree JB HUnt and Tyson.

Is there a published/available map of that 48K system?  If KC-Joplin was included, it would have been to (a) serve Tulsa more directly from KC and/or (b) segue to a corridor down US 69/75, eventually ending up in DFW.  I can see MacDonald and company wanting to circumvent the Ozarks and Ouachitas if possible, since aside from Fort Smith, there was virtually nothing there that would serve as a traffic generator or destination (U of A boosters notwithstanding!). 

[US71]

FWIW, 71 north of Carthage has been slowly upgraded for 30+ years. MoDOT just recently replaced probably the two oldest bridges left.

http://bridgehunter.com/mo/barton/bh39898/
http://bridgehunter.com/mo/barton/bh37456/

[Route66Fan]

Not in the least bit surprised; the US 71 corridor from KC to Shreveport (with a split south from there to Houston and NOLA) was one of the most glaring omissions of the original Interstate network, likely because of the difficulty of construction in the Ozarks and Ouachitas.  And not at all ironically, when the high priority corridor concept came about with 1991's ISTEA, it was the first corridor to be designated -- fortunately, I-49 was already a reality within LA, so it became a logical extension of that.  It's likely that if the longer I-69 had not been conceived and legislated, Shreveport (or Texarkana)-Houston would have been added to be mix as an independent corridor (I-47?). 

Worth noting that the 48K system studied in the 1940s (approximately 50% larger than the system Congress initially approved) still did not include US 71 between Shreveport and Joplin.

Translation:  US 71 really was that minor back when the Interstate system was planned.  Nevermind that NWA was basically a backwater back in those days.  Didn't really pick up until Sam Walton did his thing.

I remember reading an article in the Kansas City Star, back around December 2012, when US 71 was redesignated as I-49, where somebody, in their 80's or 90's, mentioned remembering when US 71, between Kansas City, MO & Joplin, MO, was a dirt road. I am guessing that would have been back in the 1920's-1930's.

SM-J737P

[froggie]

Is there a published/available map of that 48K system?  If KC-Joplin was included, it would have been to (a) serve Tulsa more directly from KC and/or (b) segue to a corridor down US 69/75, eventually ending up in DFW.  I can see MacDonald and company wanting to circumvent the Ozarks and Ouachitas if possible, since aside from Fort Smith, there was virtually nothing there that would serve as a traffic generator or destination (U of A boosters notwithstanding!). 

Yes.  Roadfan has the map as directly taken from the 1944 Interregional Highways report to Congress.

I should have elaborated further earlier, in that US 71 wasn't really proposed north of Joplin either.  Between today's I-44 and KC, the map indicates that an Interstate corridor in the 48K system would have followed US 69 instead of US 71, as well as continued south of I-44 to DFW, but that would have just as easily met your "serve KC-Tulsa more directly" comment.

[sparker]

Is there a published/available map of that 48K system?  If KC-Joplin was included, it would have been to (a) serve Tulsa more directly from KC and/or (b) segue to a corridor down US 69/75, eventually ending up in DFW.  I can see MacDonald and company wanting to circumvent the Ozarks and Ouachitas if possible, since aside from Fort Smith, there was virtually nothing there that would serve as a traffic generator or destination (U of A boosters notwithstanding!). 

Yes.  Roadfan has the map as directly taken from the 1944 Interregional Highways report to Congress.

I should have elaborated further earlier, in that US 71 wasn't really proposed north of Joplin either.  Between today's I-44 and KC, the map indicates that an Interstate corridor in the 48K system would have followed US 69 instead of US 71, as well as continued south of I-44 to DFW, but that would have just as easily met your "serve KC-Tulsa more directly" comment.

Definitely!  As far as connectiveness in that region is concerned, the US 69 and US 71 corridors south from KC metro to then-US 66 are reasonably interchangeable (boosters from the separate states notwithstanding).  This system, close to the total system mileage today, is considerably better thought-out, particularly in the Midwest, than the 41K version eventually adopted in 1956.  But still no I-77 corridor generally along US 21 -- although portions of the originally planned I-73 route (Greensboro-Roanoke and Huntington-Columbus-Toledo) show up.  Interestingly, some 70-75 years later, many of the routes -- or portions thereof -- excised from the 48K system have been reinstated by post-chargeable additions (I-22, for instance, and, surprisingly, the I-11 corridor from Kingman to Las Vegas, only because Las Vegas was a pretty small town (about 20-25K population) when this system was cobbled together).  But it was also interesting to note the two (US 99 and US 101) corridors between Southern and Northern California coexisting!  Interstate-grade construction on the latter, especially along the Santa Barbara seacoast "shelf" and over the Cuesta grade, even to '57 criteria, would have been both physically demanding and likely the subject, years later, of environmental criticism; DOH would have had to expedite construction quickly during the early Interstate years (as they did the original Interstate portion of the L.A. freeway network) to avoid the social and legal issues that emerged by the '70's.

[edwaleni]

[sparker]

Funny, I don't see a "5-lane" configuration broken out in the map legend; and "3-lane" could either mean passing lanes or a center-turn facility.  Besides that, any idea regarding the actual format the 4-lane sections entail? -- i.e., are they controlled access in any form, twinned, or simply undivided arteries?  Normally, I'd just peruse GE/GSV, but that area hasn't been updated in years! 

[MikieTimT]

Funny, I don't see a "5-lane" configuration broken out in the map legend; and "3-lane" could either mean passing lanes or a center-turn facility.  Besides that, any idea regarding the actual format the 4-lane sections entail? -- i.e., are they controlled access in any form, twinned, or simply undivided arteries?  Normally, I'd just peruse GE/GSV, but that area hasn't been updated in years!

I drive this stretch regularly.  The 3 lane sections indicated are all passing/climb lanes.  Glad they are getting around to another one in eastern Boone County (F) as I'm always behind a bunch for 15 miles there.  They really need another passing lane in eastern Baxter County as well.  Those two would knock another 5-7 minutes off the trip.  Most helpful would be a northern bypass of Harrison.  That in itself would knock 10-12 minutes off the trip.  Unfortunately, not planned at this time, however, so a very long way from happening.

[edwaleni]

Funny, I don't see a "5-lane" configuration broken out in the map legend; and "3-lane" could either mean passing lanes or a center-turn facility.  Besides that, any idea regarding the actual format the 4-lane sections entail? -- i.e., are they controlled access in any form, twinned, or simply undivided arteries?  Normally, I'd just peruse GE/GSV, but that area hasn't been updated in years!

All I could find outside the study was a MOU from 1990 that US-412 would use existing ROW from Tontitown west to the OK border.  Other than that no engineering details.

Here is the study I am clipping from.

https://www.nwarpc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Hwy-412-Executive-Summary-2020-4.pdf

[bugo]

I remember reading an article in the Kansas City Star, back around December 2012, when US 71 was redesignated as I-49, where somebody, in their 80's or 90's, mentioned remembering when US 71, between Kansas City, MO & Joplin, MO, was a dirt road. I am guessing that would have been back in the 1920's-1930's.

The last stretch of US 71 to be paved between Kansas City and Joplin was the short stretch between Nevada and Milo (today's BL 49 and Route K) which was paved in 1930.

[Scott5114]

The US-412 upgrade got merged into the pending infrastructure bill.

SEC. 11514. HIGH PRIORITY CORRIDORS ON THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY SYSTEM.
(a) HIGH PRIORITY CORRIDORS.–Section 1105(c) of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (Public Law 102—240; 105 Stat. 2032; 133 Stat. 3018) is amended by adding at the end the following:
[...]
(96) The route that generally follows United States Route 412 from its intersection with Interstate Route 35 in Noble County, Oklahoma, passing through Tulsa, Oklahoma, to its intersection with Interstate Route 49 in Springdale, Arkansas.
[...]
(b) DESIGNATION AS FUTURE INTERSTATES.–Section 1105(e)(5)(A) of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (Public Law 102—240; 109 Stat. 597; 133 Stat. 3018) is amended in the first sentence by striking "˜"˜and subsection (c)(91)'' and inserting "˜"˜subsection (c)(91), subsection (c)(92), subsection 6 (c)(93)(A), subsection (c)(94), subsection (c)(95), subsection (c)(96), and subsection (c)(97)''.

[Plutonic Panda]

Nice! I hope this happens sooner than later.

[Scott5114]

It will be interesting to see if the brand new shiny SH-312 gets replaced with a 3di or if it just stays a state route turnpike for the rest of time.

A 3di in Stillwater of all places! What times we live in!

[bugo]

This is a little off topic, but to continue on mainline US 412 at the beginning of at least two bypasses, you must take a hard right or a hard left to get on and off at least one end of the bypass. Mountain Home and Paragould are the two I'm thinking of. Why aren't they building these bypasses with seamless connections to the through route at each end? Oklahoma did the same thing with the US 70 Durant bypass. These are going to be choke points when traffic counts go up enough.

[MikieTimT]

This is a little off topic, but to continue on mainline US 412 at the beginning of at least two bypasses, you must take a hard right or a hard left to get on and off at least one end of the bypass. Mountain Home and Paragould are the two I'm thinking of. Why aren't they building these bypasses with seamless connections to the through route at each end? Oklahoma did the same thing with the US 70 Durant bypass. These are going to be choke points when traffic counts go up enough.

This infrastructure bill only addresses as far as Springdale/Lowell eastward.  Those bypasses you refer to don't connect to limited access facilities now, so the current endpoints of them aren't the final ones anyway should limited access ever actually make it past NWA in our lifetimes.  The Fayetteville Bypass (now Fulbright Expressway) was similar in nature until I-540/I-49 was constructed in its various phases at near its original endpoints.

[okroads]

It will be interesting to see if the brand new shiny SH-312 gets replaced with a 3di or if it just stays a state route turnpike for the rest of time.

A 3di in Stillwater of all places! What times we live in!

As long as ODOT doesn't pull a Caltrans and number it I-312... [ducks]

[Scott5114]

It will be interesting to see if the brand new shiny SH-312 gets replaced with a 3di or if it just stays a state route turnpike for the rest of time.

A 3di in Stillwater of all places! What times we live in!

As long as ODOT doesn't pull a Caltrans and number it I-312... [ducks]

Nah, if anything they'll find a way to number it I-240....

[rte66man]

This is a little off topic, but to continue on mainline US 412 at the beginning of at least two bypasses, you must take a hard right or a hard left to get on and off at least one end of the bypass. Mountain Home and Paragould are the two I'm thinking of. Why aren't they building these bypasses with seamless connections to the through route at each end? Oklahoma did the same thing with the US 70 Durant bypass. These are going to be choke points when traffic counts go up enough.

I don't know this for certain but I seem to recall it had to do with both the land acquisition at the western end plus a dream that the bypass could extend a little north then bend west to the eastern shore of Lake Texoma. Again, I can't find any proof for that.

[Scott5114]

Been meaning to do this for a while, just now got around to it:


The midpoint of the line connecting Springdale and the western terminus of the proposed interstate would be about halfway between where a theoretical grid-perfect I-46 and I-48 intersect I-35. The actual western terminus of the proposed interstate would be just about at the I-48 mark. Therefore, I believe this interstate should be designated I-48.

But I-50 would be close too.