That’s why officials soon will select a firm to study U.S. Highway 24-40 from Kansas Highway 7 east of Basehor to County Road 1 south of Tonganoxie.

The 24-40 corridor is a four-lane highway linking southern Leavenworth County to the Kansas City area.

Only three stoplights — two in Tonganoxie and one in Basehor — control traffic on the 10-mile stretch.

Darryl Fields, the Mid-America Regional Council’s project manager of the 24-40 corridor study, said he’s working with Leavenworth County and the cities of Basehor and Tonganoxie, as well as the Kansas Department of Transportation, on the study.

Basically, Fields said, it will address this question: “What do we need to do to keep 24-40 a smooth corridor and still provide impetus to promote economic development?”

Officials say this is a critical traffic corridor where land is likely to undergo intense development — which leads to even more traffic.

Leavenworth County Commissioner Dean Oroke noted the study will look at a two-mile wide swath of land along the corridor — or a mile on each side of 24-40.

Oroke said, if development — and corridor access roads — are not controlled, studies predict that by the year 2030 it will take 12 minutes longer to drive from Tonganoxie to Basehor on 24-40. And, Fields said, the study will consider the proposed construction of a turnpike interchange on Leavenworth County Road 1.”What we’re looking at is, since there’s been a lot of growth in the area and this (study) is in conjunction with the idea that KTA (Kansas Turnpike Authority) is going to open an interchange on I-70, is what’s going to happen with the corridor on U.S. 24-40,” Fields said.

These firms submitted bids: Wilbur Smith, Lee’s Summit; HNTB Overland Park; Cook Flatt and Strobel, Kansas City, Mo.; Parsons Brinckerhoff, Quade and Douglas, Lenexa; HDR Kansas City, Mo.; and Bucher Willis and Ratliff, Kansas City, Mo.

Fields said it was likely a consulting firm would be decided the first week in June.

Though it’s important to select the right consultant team, Fields said the public’s input is important as well. “The voting public are the people that use it on an every-day basis, so their input is the most important thing.”

Leavenworth County’s chief planner, Chris Dunn, said this was an important step.

“This is going to be a major growth area of the county and we want to make sure we do it right,” he said.