Highway Bypass Project Moving Forward in Pratt

The Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) released a preliminary plan for the “US Highway 54 Bypass Project”. This proposed project was initiated in October of 2006. Since that time all the property needed for the Bypass has been purchased. However, at this time, no specific dates have been released concerning the construction timeline. The City of Pratt supports the expansion of Highway 54 as a contiguous four-lane highway, west of Wichita to the southwest Kansas border.

We recognize expanding US Highway 54 to a four-lane highway would improve safety, enhance traffic flow, offer more opportunities for economic growth, and decrease emergency response times. This vital project has the potential to bring numerous benefits, not only to our community, but many others in the southwest Kansas region.

The City of Pratt is very supportive of this project. The most current traffic count of approximately 15,270 vehicles, in which over 2,910 of them are semi-trucks, travel through Pratt daily but, many times, the traffic exceeds that number. The expansion to four lanes would create a safe and efficient corridor for commercial as well as individual travel.

If communities in Southwest Kansas expect to grow or thrive, this corridor is the lifeline that will allow them to accomplish that goal. With KDOT’s resources, and support from the Southwest Kansas communities, this project would successfully provide a safe and needed corridor to the southwest United States.