Lecompton ? Douglas County officials are clearing the way for a safer road connecting Lawrence and Lecompton.

County commissioners agreed Monday to pay $39,030 for 12 tracts of land to accommodate reconstruction of County Road 1029 from the Farmers Turnpike to Lecompton. Construction is expected to begin this fall.

The county now has spent $126,565 for 20 of the 36 tracts needed to make room for the project, which will add paved shoulders while lowering hills, filling dips and flattening roadside ditches along the 2.75-mile stretch.

The goal: Improve safety for the 4,700 drivers who use the road each day.

“It’s something that has to be done,” Commissioner Jere McElhaney said.

The Kansas Department of Transportation is scheduled to open bids for the work in August. That could lead to construction as early as mid-September, said Keith Browning, county engineer and director of Public Works.

The two-lane road will be closed to through traffic during construction, which would be expected to last into late next summer, Browning said. Traffic will be steered toward a formal detour that involves U.S. Highway 40 and County Road 1023.

The detour would make the trip from Lawrence to Lecompton about nine miles longer, a challenge McElhaney is bracing for.

“There’s going to be some inconvenience,” he said. “There’s going to be frustration, no two ways about it. I expect a lot of phone calls, but when the project’s done, it’ll be a lot better.”

The overhaul originally was to be completed last year, but commissioners pushed it back to give officials more time to negotiate deals for roadside properties and to save the county money during a tight budget year. The project has been on the county’s five-year capital improvement plan since 1998.

The Kansas Department of Transportation is slated to finance 80 percent of the project’s estimated $2.3 million construction cost, with the county picking up 20 percent.

The county also is responsible for paying all costs connected with acquiring land, moving utilities and drawing detailed plans. In all, the county has set aside $980,760 — up from $761,000 last year — for its estimated $1.15 million share of project costs.

McElhaney doesn’t mind spending the money. He expects several contractors to submit competitive bids to get the job, which could ensure work for dozens of subcontractors while saving taxpayers money.

“It’s a slow economy,” he said. “Now is a fantastic time to solicit bids for this project; we’ll be getting some fabulous bids. It’s perfect timing for Douglas County to get this job under way.”