Panel approves $600 million in road projects across state

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Missouri transportation officials approved more than $600 million in road projects Friday.

The work includes more than 100 projects, worth $200 million, of repaving, striping and other safety improvements as part of the Missouri Department of Transportation's Smooth Roads Initiative.

Also approved was 55 projects worth $432 million that already were scheduled but will be completed sooner, generally by a year or two, because of the influx of money for transportation that voters approved in November.

Most of those projects, from grading and paving to bridge work, are along the same routes as the Smooth Roads Initiative, which focuses on the most traveled 2,200 of the state's 32,000 miles of roads. Highway officials said those 2,200 miles account for 60 percent of the state's traffic volume and are within 10 miles of 86 percent of residents.

Others are major projects in the long-term plan that have all studies, land purchases and other ground work done and needed only money to move forward.

"If we do good on this, we'll continue to have confidence from the Legislature and citizens as well," said commission chairman Bill McKenna.

Examples include building a $31 million four-lane road in Clark County; a $20 million overhaul of the Interstate 435 Missouri River bridge in Jackson and Clay counties; paving parts of Missouri 5 in Camden County; a $15 million project in the St. Louis area to repair and rebuild Interstate 55 bridges and pavement; $14 million to repave and improve signals on U.S. 67 in St. Louis County; $50 million for a four-lane road along U.S. 71 in McDonald County; and $22 million to reconstruct ramps at Interstate 44 and U.S. 65 in Greene County.

The Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission in December approved the first phase of Smooth Roads projects, about $159 million worth.

The bulk of the nearly $800 million worth of projects now approved should be under contract, and many completed, within the next two years, chief engineer Kevin Keith said.

Transportation officials now are turning their attention to a third phase of uses for the money, available because voters passed a state constitutional amendment to direct all vehicle sales taxes and some gas taxes to improving roads and bridges.

The next phase involves identifying roughly $1.3 billion worth of new major projects, including both creating roads and major rebuilding of roads. Transportation officials hope to have some idea of those projects in May.

Among the Smooth Roads spending approved Friday:

* More than $11 million for northern Missouri, to repave parts of Interstate 35 in Clinton, Daviess, Harrison and DeKalb counties.

* $5.8 million for eastern Missouri, to repave parts of U.S. 61 in Lincoln, Marion, Ralls and Pike counties.

* More than $17 million for the Kansas City area, including improvements to parts of U.S. 169 in Clay County, repaving of U.S. 24 and 40 and Missouri 78 in Jackson County, and repaving and other upgrades to Interstates 29 and 635 in Platte County.

* More than $10 million in central Missouri, including pavement for part of U.S. 63 in Boone County, pavement and other improvements for U.S. 50 in Cole and Pettis counties and for U.S. 54 in Cole and Callaway counties.

* More than $38 million for the St. Louis area, including repaving of Missouri 141 in Jefferson and St. Louis counties, repaving U.S. 61 in St. Charles, St. Louis and Jefferson counties, and Highway 94 in St. Charles County, and pavement and other improvements on Interstate 44 and U.S. 67 in St. Louis County.

* More than $13 million for southwest Missouri, including pavement and other improvements for U.S. 71 in Bates and Vernon counties.

* About $16 million for south-central Missouri, including repaving parts of Missouri 13 in Greene County, U.S. 60 in Greene and Webster counties, Interstate 44 in Laclede. Phelps, Pulaski and Webster counties, and pavement on Missouri 13 in Polk and Greene counties.