Highway commission awards area road contracts, OKs five-year plan

The Missouri State Highways and Transportation Commission awarded contracts Friday to add turn lanes and widen Highway 51 in Perryville and stripe 176 miles of roadways in Southeast Missouri.

Commissioners awarded a $202,648 contract to Fronabarger Concreters Inc. of Oak Ridge. The project involves the addition of turn lanes 1,000 feet east of the U.S. 61/Highway 51 intersection in Perryville, Missouri Department of Transportation officials said.

The turn lanes will improve safety and provide easier access for traffic going to the T.G. Missouri plant, MoDOT officials said.

The commission awarded a $140,556 contract to Central Seal Co. of Danville, Ky., to do the striping work on interstates 55 and 155, as well as highways 60 and 67.

Both construction projects are scheduled to begin in August. The striping should be completed by late September and the turn lanes by late this fall, officials said.

Also on Friday, state highway officials gave final approval to an updated five-year plan for road projects, adding about three dozen major new projects to be funded through Amendment 3, approved by voters last year.

The projects are part of a $7.3 billion road and bridge plan that started July 1 and runs through June 2010. All told, the plan includes about 850 projects.

The most costly new project to be funded by Amendment 3 money is the $275 million reconstruction of Interstate 64 in St. Louis County. Others include the $168 million Clay County expansion of Interstate 29, including building a new bridge.