Jeanne Nottingham knows U.S. Highway 59 like the back of her hand.

She and her husband, David, own the Baldwin Junction Veterinary Clinic at the intersection of highways 59 and 56. The couple also reside near the intersection of U.S. Highway 59 and County Route 460.

“The highway is definitely dangerous,” she said. “There’s no doubt that the road needs help. It’s needed help for years.”

A fatal accident Wednesday at the intersection of U.S. 59 and County Route 460 is a clear indication of the risks the highway poses, Nottingham said. Others agree.

Over the years, the traffic has steadily increased on U.S. 59 with vehicles moving at faster speeds. That’s why the Kansas Department of Transportation has been working on a plan to turn an 18-mile stretch of the road between Lawrence and Ottawa into a four-lane freeway 300 feet east of the existing highway. The project will be put out to bid in 2007.

“It would have been nice if we would have improved that road 20 years ago instead of four years from now. If we hadn’t fought about where the road was going to go and what it was going to do, maybe it would be done by now and something like this wouldn’t have happened,” said Scott Zaremba, president of Zarco, referring Wednesday’s fatal accident, which sent a vehicle careening into a fuel pump at the Zarco filling station at that intersection.

Safety is a main reason for the highway project, which is estimated to cost $209.5 million, KDOT spokesman Joe Blubaugh said.

Between 2000 and 2004, there have been 285 accidents along U.S. 59 between the south city limits of Lawrence and the Douglas County and Franklin County line. Five of those were fatal accidents producing seven deaths.

“Unfortunately, we can’t build a road and hope to do it over night,” Blubaugh said. “We’re in the planning stages, and we’re trying to get it all worked out. We’re getting close.”

While the freeway is expected to improve safety and traffic flow, it has caused some anxiety.

KDOT officials began acquiring property needed for the freeway project in 2003, and some area residents were hoping the project would leave a minimal footprint and dislocate as few people as possible.

“I think a lot of us had hoped that something could have been done that wouldn’t impact so many of us,” Nottingham said.

KDOT informed the Nottinghams that the site of their veterinary clinic was needed for the project. Nottingham said they were negotiating with officials from the state’s transportation agency.

KDOT officials identified 39 early acquisition properties, said Rob Stork, operations assistant in the bureau of right of way for KDOT. Other acquisitions could follow as needed.

“We’ve only been working on cases that we know we need the entire property right now,” said Rob Stork, operations assistant in the bureau of right of way for KDOT. The purchase of the properties has meant relocating families and a few businesses, Stork said.

Settlements have been reached with 33 of those property owners in Douglas and Franklin counties.

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Nottingham said the negotiation process had been slow.

“We don’t know what we’re going to do once things are settled,” she said. “Relocating would be difficult.”

Stork said there would be other re-locations.

“But we won’t know for sure or how many until the final design for the project is completed,” he said.

Nottingham said KDOT officials had informed her that most likely they would do a partial acquisition of the land where her home is located.

“We’re not entirely sure how that would impact us though,” she said.

Blubaugh said KDOT likely would have a meeting with Douglas County residents about the project in late June or early July and planned to meet with Franklin County residents June 2.

“But that meeting is for Franklin County residents,” Blubaugh said. “Their portion of the project is running about six months ahead of Douglas County’s portion. We don’t have as many answers on the Douglas County portion of the project yet.”