The Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) recently announced that the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) will take on fewer new projects in order to keep bridges and roads in good condition.
The total number of projects that STIP has taken on for its five-year bridge and highway construction schedule amounts to 574. This amounts to 250 fewer projects compared to STIP’s plan for last year. MoDOT officials attribute this decrease to the construction budget decline, which went from $596 million in 2016 to approximately $325 million in 2017 and later.
"This year, the draft STIP demonstrates the commitment MoDOT has made to projects that focus on primary routes and taking care of the existing highway system," Roberta Broeker, MoDOT interim director, said. "As the construction budget gets smaller each year, projects in the STIP must reflect only the most essential transportation needs."
In past years, STIP had more than $1 billion to spend on construction projects for bridges and roads each year. This financing created jobs, improved the economy, and spread the safe and effective transportation of goods and people throughout various states across the U.S. Now that there are decreases in fuel tax revenues and increases in the cost of materials, that $1 billion sum is no longer possible.
"Despite the progress of the last 10 years, 2017 will bring the funding shortfall MoDOT has predicted for years," Broeker said. "The ramifications of that shortfall will extend to every region of the state, and the impact will be significant in terms of safety and economic growth."
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