By Andra Bryan Stefanoni
news@joplinglobe.com
PITTSBURG, Kan. — The U.S. Department of Transportation announced last week that it will disburse almost $1 million in grant funding to the U.S. Highway 69 Association in Kansas to further the group’s effort to extend the four-lane highway from Arma to U.S. Highway 400 in Cherokee County.
Specifically, the $889,200 will be used for a corridor study from north of Arma to south of the Crawford-Cherokee county line, a distance of about 25 miles. Funding will come from the Transportation, Community and System Preservation program, the goal of which is to help fund planning costs as an investment in the transportation infrastructure.
Those lobbying for the corridor to be built say it would provide route continuity with the four-lane U.S. 69 north to Kansas City, and would provide a more efficient transportation system to boost regional economic development.
“We are delighted to learn of this grant as it allows progress to continue on the remaining portion of U.S. Highway 69,” said the group’s executive director, Jim AuBuchon, a former Pittsburg resident.
In February, AuBuchon, along with a contingent from the Pittsburg area, met with congressional leaders in Washington to request that $4.5 million be appropriated next year for the project. While in Washington, the delegation unexpectedly was informed that similar lobbying efforts last year paid off with an earmark of $950,000 to be used for preliminary work on the segment of Highway 69 from Fort Scott to Arma.
And as a follow-up to the February visit, Rep. Lynn Jenkins, R-Kan., requested additional details about the U.S. 69 project in the Crawford-Cherokee county area, and that led to the most recent earmark for the study.
The corridor study will address issues such as preliminary design, traffic forecasting, access management, environmental impact, market analysis, land-use regulation and zoning.
According to Kansas Department of Transportation, the existing two-lane section of U.S. 69 is heavily traveled, making safety a critical concern. Ken Brock, chairman of the Highway 69 Association, reported this spring that 12,000 cars traverse it daily, but it is designed to handle 6,000 cars per day.
Building a new corridor would be years in the future, provided that funding for the estimated $250 million project can be obtained. Advocates say the recent grant is a step in that direction.
Blake Benson, president of the Pittsburg Area Chamber of Commerce, said widening the highway would play a key role in the continued economic development in the area.
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