The new U.S. Highway 71 Broad Street Overpass
Deputy Director and Chief Engineer Emanuel Banks
NEW TEXARKANA OVERPASS IS SETTING FOR
WORK ZONE SAFETY EVENT
A
BY GL E NN BOL IC K
PRIL WAS WORK ZONE SAFETY MONTH IN ARKANSAS. The AHTD always selects an
active work zone somewhere around the State as a backdrop for a news conference promoting the event. This year, the new U.S. Highway 71 Broad Street Overpass in Texarkana was the chosen site. On April 11th, former Highway Commissioner and current State Representative Prissy Hickerson served as special guest for the event. Assistant Texarkana Mayor Laney Harrison stood in for Mayor Ruth Penny Bell to welcome everyone to Texarkana. City Director Travis Odom took the opportunity to thank the Department for all of the highway construction completed in recent years in the area.
Deputy Director and Chief Engineer Emanuel Banks shared his thoughts on this year’s national Work Zone Safety month theme — “Don’t Be THAT Driver.”
“Don’t be the one on the phone, the one eating, the one putting on makeup or the one yelling at everyone,” said Banks. “It takes everyone working together to make work zones a safe place to work and a safe place to drive through.” Cindy Williams, owner of Time Striping, was at the event representing the Arkansas Chapter of the American Traffic Safety Services Association and the Arkansas Chapter of the Associated General Contractors.
Williams gave a personal, first-hand account of a tragic accident involving a construction worker in a work zone and
State Representative Prissy Hickerson cuts the ribbon on the new bridge.
impressed upon everyone how something like that affects so many more than just loved ones and co-workers. Before a ribbon was cut to celebrate the completion of the overpass project, Hickerson spoke to the crowd.
“As a kid, I grew up south of here and this was the way we came to Texarkana, so it brings back a lot of memories for me,” she said. “I don’t know if it was safer than our house, but every time a bad storm came my father would pack the car and we would stay under the viaduct until it passed.” Unlike the old bridge, the new Highway 71 Broad Street Overpass includes bike lanes. The project was awarded to Manhattan Road and Bridge in early 2014 for $11.6 million after the old bridge was deemed structurally deficient by today’s standards.