PROJECT MERCURY: IMPROVING HIGHWAY DEPARTMENT EFFICIENCY

JEFFERSON CITY -- Project Mercury is the name of a pilot program that could radically alter the way Missouri's highway department is managed, Chief Engineer Joe Mickes said.

At a Tuesday meeting sponsored by the Regional Commerce and Growth Association and Southeast Missouri State University, Mickes said the highway department's management structure hasn't been altered since its start in 1920.

"The highway department is a stodgy organization," said Mickes, a 37-year agency veteran. "It mimics the military in structure. We going to see what we can do when we change that."

Mercury is modeled after a group in the aviation industry called the Skunk Works that developed the U-2 and SR-71 spy planes and stealth technology, he said.

"They did all these things under budget and on time," Mickes said. "We can do the same thing."

Mickes started the experimental project by asking for volunteers. To lead Mercury, he picked a district engineer with one year left before retirement.

The idea is to make each of the state's 10 districts more autonomous, to find ways of achieving results without a hindering bureaucracy.

"I think the district engineers have a better idea of what is going on in their district than the department headquarters in Jefferson City," Mickes said. "This will give them a chance to do it."

Mickes said more emphasis on design will be placed at the district level, along with engineering and operations.