State Sen. Kenneth Corn (D-Poteau) and State Reps. Ed Cannaday
(D-Porum) and Neil Brannon (D-Arkoma) announced Thursday that the
Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) has approved plans for
major improvements to U.S. Highway 59 in LeFlore County.
The
project includes surface, drain and bridge repairs and the widening of
the highway to four lanes, stretching from the intersection of U.S.
Highway 59 and State Highway 9 north to the Arkansas River bridge,
which is the county line between LeFlore and Sequoyah Counties.
Corn
said the project is made possible through federal transportation
stimulus funding. Oklahoma will receive a total of $340 million in
transportation stimulus funding, with work beginning this month on
nearly $250 million in road and bridge improvements throughout the
state. He said he did not know how long the project will take to
complete.
Corn said the announcement was positive news for both the state and LeFlore County.
“Our
rural roads and bridges must be a focus of state government’s efforts
to improve our transportation infrastructure,” Corn said. “This is
positive news for LeFlore County residents, and I’m pleased ODOT has
approved plans for this project. This puts us in position to begin
construction very soon.”
The total, estimated cost of the
project is $20,696,687.21. Cannaday said the announcement of a record
number of road and bridge improvement projects in recent months was
good news for Oklahoma.
“This is positive news for a state that
has continuously been ranked as having some of the worst roads and
bridges in the country,” Cannaday said. “This funding will allow for
the completion of numerous high-priority road and bridge projects,
making travel in Oklahoma safer and more efficient for everyone.”
Brannon said he was pleased that construction would soon begin on the project.
“We
all understand the important role that our roads and bridges play in
making our communities great places to live,” Brannon said. “Grants
like this are critical for our communities that don’t have the
financial resources of major cities, but still must support a
significant amount of traffic.”