NewsOK
The Oklahoman / Published: March 9, 2010
House approves road project
The House passed a measure Monday that would place a proposed Tulsa road project on the approved list of turnpikes. House Bill 3220 would allow the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority to vote to conduct a feasibility study on finishing the
Gilcrease Expressway and outer loop. It passed 74-22 and now goes to the Senate. The project involves a road beginning at Interstate 44 at or near its intersection with 49th West Avenue extending north to U.S. 64, turning northeast, crossing 41st West Avenue and continuing east to the L.L. Tisdale Expressway. Rep. Lucky Lamons, D-Tulsa, said about 85 percent of the homes in the path of the roadway, which was designed in 1964, have been bought. Preliminary estimates are the road, which would include a bridge over the Arkansas River, could cost about $200 million. House Speaker Chris Benge, R-Tulsa, the author of the measure, said if the Turnpike Authority voted to do the study it could pursue building the toll road without further legislative approval. "It’s just another step that’s needed to continue to develop a city the size of Tulsa,” he said. Rep. Mike Reynolds, R-Oklahoma City, opposed the bill. "The public’s getting tired of us subsidizing all of these roads off the Turner Turnpike and the H.E. Bailey Turnpike,” he said... FULL ARTICLE
Posted on
Tue, March 9, 2010
by Crystal Drwenski