The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) has awarded a $24.9 million Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant to the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT).
The funding provided by this RAISE grant will be used for the construction of a four-mile highway that bypasses U.S. Highway 67 around the west side of Corning. The Corning Bypass is part of a larger, multi-state effort to complete Future Interstate 57 between Walnut Ridge and Poplar Bluff, Missouri.
“When complete, the Interstate 57 Corridor will improve mobility and enhance economic development for our state and the region,” ARDOT director Jared Wiley said in a press release.
The Corning Bypass will be a four-lane, fully controlled access facility that will include two interchanges with U.S. Highway 67. The project will provide an alternate route for commercial trucks around Corning’s downtown business district and aims to improve safety and quality of life for residents.
“This transportation grant funding will be used to assist ARDOT as we work to complete the missing link in the transportation network that will ultimately connect the Little Rock metropolitan area with Chicago via an interstate highway,” Wiley said in the release.
The RAISE program is one of several grant programs providing funding to communities across the country. During this funding cycle, the USDOT awarded $1.32 billion in grant funding for more than 109 projects across the country.
Five other Arkansas recipients were awarded RAISE grants during the funding cycle.
Rock Region Metropolitan Transit Authority received $5.4 million to design a replacement of their transit station. The City of Fort Smith received nearly $25 million to construct 9.3 miles of active transportation facilities. Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission received $25 million to construct side paths along 17.5-miles of Highway 112 in connection with upcoming ARDOT projects to improve the corridor. The City of Mena received $3.3 million to create an active transportation plan, master street plan, ADA transition plan and a complete streets policy. The City of Hot Springs received $2.3 million to plan four new multi-use trails.
Wiley said in the release that Arkansas also received $17.4 million in Congressionally Directed Funding specifically for Interstate 57, bringing the total amount of additional funding to $42.3 million for the project.
“Our staff worked hard to develop a strong grant application, and I am proud to see that their labor is bearing great fruit.,” Wiley said in the release. “We appreciate the United States Department of Transportation’s recognition of the national importance of the Interstate 57 Corridor.”
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