Tulsa, BA, Bixby Residents To Feel Impact Of Road Widening Project

Thursday night, Tulsa County engineers unveiled a major plan to repair and extend 101st Street between Memorial and Garnett.

Tulsa County representatives said the two-lane road at 101st is built to handle about 10,000 cars a day, but more like 16,000 cars pass through.

And with projected growth in the area, the road expansions need to happen fast.

Nearly 100 people filled the Hardesty Library as Tulsa County engineers explained the plans to improve 101st Street.

"The danger of going off the road, the dangers of trying to turn and access the road is significant and I think we are overdue for widening," resident Richard Ekhoff said.

The stretch of 101st between Memorial and Garnett has problems with traffic congestion and flooding. County engineers said the plan will fix those issues.

"There could be some traffic disruptions. The goal, and the plan, is to keep at least two lanes of traffic open through the entire project area," said engineer Tom Rains.

He said the plan will reconstruct 101st as a five-lane road, with four driving lanes and a turning lane.

It'll also reduce flooding at Haikey Creek and they’ll replace the bridge and raise the roadway.

"In the near future it's predicted to go up to 20,000, so you can imagine the congestion along that roadway."

The project borders Tulsa, Broken Arrow and Bixby, so the people living there will feel the impact of construction.

The project is expected to begin in late 2017. From there it'll take about two years to finish.

"Progress is always painful, and it will not be an easy project," Ekhoff said.

Ekhoff was at the meeting and lives near 101st street. He said there's no better time than now to do something about the road.

"We'll look back five or 10 years from now and be very thankful," he said.