Plans to connect highway traffic around Bella Vista have been indefinitely postponed after Missouri voters rejected an amendment to fund their state's portion of the project.
The measure was voted down on a statewide ballot Tuesday. The Interstate 49 bypass was defeated as part of a larger amendment to provide $540 million per year for Missouri highway and road construction through a statewide sales tax.
A Missouri engineer says the project was estimated to cost Arkansas taxpayers $150 million and Missouri taxpayers $50 million.
The Bella Vista bypass was designed to route interstate traffic around the western edge of the city. It would have reconnected to Interstate 49 near Pineville, Missouri.
An Arkansas transportation spokesman says the state will continue with portions of its construction.
