Missouri DOT to Receive $7.7b for Transportation Improvements

Motorists on Missouri roadways can expect safer and more comfortable commutes.

Source : Unsplash

May 25, 2022

Author : Alex Bustillos

A major revamp of Missouri's roadways has been made possible due to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which totals $1.2 trillion in country-wide funding. 

Of that total, the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) has been allocated $7.7 billion. This is $2 billion more than the DOT’s last five-year funding cycle.

To stress the importance of the Bill, President Biden said, "This is a blue-collar blueprint to rebuild America." This will serve to maintain and improve the underfunded transportation sector.

The Biden administration has stated one of its main goals is to rebuild the country’s crumbling infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, rail, airports, clean water, high-speed internet, and several other areas.

Missouri’s infrastructure received a "C-" grade in the most recent ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) Report Card. The state has 2,190 bridges and 7,576 miles of highway, which are considered in poor condition.

According to the ASCE, the funding required to repair and maintain the Pan-American Highway (the network of roads and bridges stretching across 19,000 miles) would amount to approximately $3 trillion. The current federal funding goes a long way in plugging that deficit.

As part of this effort, MoDOT is working with regional partners across the state to update its transportation priorities. This joint effort is reflected in the recently released draft 2023-2027 Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). The reports of the program list transportation projects planned by state and regional planning agencies for fiscal years 2023 through 2027.

Many projects that were stuck in the pipeline have been expedited. Due to the influx of federal funds, Winfield's Mississippi River Dam Project has accelerated the dam's repair earlier than expected. 

The Army Corps of Engineers is taking up a big part of the dam repairs. As we at Contractor News reported late last year, the Biden Administration has been utilizing the Army Corp of Engineers to speed up repairs to ports to help alleviate supply chain delays.

The East-West Gateway Council of Governments, the region's planning arm, is seeking funding for various projects, including trail upgrades in Madison County, "traffic calming measures" on Goodfellow Boulevard in St. Louis, and new roadways for commercial development in St. Charles. It also intends to request assistance with MetroLink's north-south expansion.

"There are certainly more needs than what funding is bringing, but in many cases, and in many places, we're going to be able to exceed, I think what we've been able to for literally the last 20 years," MoDOT Director Patrick McKenna said.

The funding has been a shot in the arm for local contractors and construction companies, who are now eager to bid for the barrage of projects that will be underway in the state.

While other states are constantly striving to determine federal funding allotment, McKenna confidently said, "That's not in question for us here. And we're going to put those dollars to use for the taxpayers here in Missouri."

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