LITTLE ROCK, Ark — The I-430 bridge can be one of the busiest places for Arkansas drivers, especially during rush-hour traffic.
But ARDOT is trying to relieve some of that congestion by having motorists drive on the shoulder.
"It will enable you to get on at Hwy 10, travel in that one lane all the way across the bridge, and if you're going to Maumelle, you don't even have to get out of the lane, merge, or anything; because it will carry you the entire distance all the way across the bridge," said ARDOT's Danny Straessle.
ARDOT will make the six lanes already on the bridge smaller, to account for the extra outside lane.
"We can squeeze a fourth lane out of that on both sides and make it eight lanes by adjusting the shoulder," said Straessle.
There will also be cameras, message boards, and overhead lane control signs to adjust traffic flow in real-time.
"We will have a light indicator over the lane, indicating whether or not drivers can use it. So if there's a red 'X' above it, you can't drive on it. If there is a green arrow, then you can drive on it," he explained.
This plan will save the state about $85-million, as compared to the other option of widening the entire bridge. That proposal was estimated to be $100-million.
"For about 14 million dollars, we can get a new driving surface, we can add an extra lane, and we can solve some traffic congestion," Straessle said.
Construction on this project will begin sometime next year.