A new roundabout on the U.S. 77 bypass in Arkansas City will open at least a couple weeks later than expected because of heavier-than-usual rains this summer, state transportation officials said Monday.
The $1.5 million project, which has kept the bypass closed for the summer, should be completed the week of Sept. 21, according to Allen Grunder, area engineer for the Kansas Dept. of Transportation. A date for reopening the road was originally slated for Sept. 4.
But the area has received about 40 percent more rain than is common for this time of year, Grunder said.
"We didn’t think it was fair to hold the contractor to the original date," he said.
Weather permitting, the roundabout and the bypass will open later this month.
Aside from an opening date, Grunder has heard a number of questions about what might go in the middle of the new roundabout, which is located at Kansas and the bypass. The state plans to plant grass there and maintain, although interested groups might be able to get a permit for something a bit more elaborate.
The state won’t allow any large structures in the center area, Grunder said, but might allow for a small sculpture or another small display. Groups that would apply to take on such a project would be responsible for all upkeep.
The state has received concerns and complaints anytime a new roundabout project has been approved but Grunder expects few actual problems.
"It’s something new," he said. "But once people start using it and get used to it, they usually likely them."
The new roundabout is the first the state has placed in Cowley County.
