A major traffic bottleneck in south Tulsa has been eliminated with the widening of the the 81st Street and Yale Avenue intersection. The project, which was funded by the 1991 sales tax, involved widening the intersection to four lanes on 81st street and six lanes on Yale Avenue, with left- and right-turn lanes on each approach. The project also included extensive storm sewer work, including replacing a small bridge on 81st Street, west of Yale Avenue, and widening 81st street to five lanes (asphalt with a concrete curb/gutter) from Yale Avenue east to Holland Hall School. Before the project, traffic jams were common at the intersection, and gridlock was not uncommon during the afternoon rush hour, as southbound traffic on Yale Avenue often would back up to at least 71st Street - sometimes further. The widening project, which included a flood-detention pond on the southwest corner, began in the spring of 1996 and was completed in June 1997. Photo taken June 1997.
