Transportation Improvement Program Approved

The Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission gives a thumbs up to the 2020-2024 Statewide Transportation Improvement Program,known as the STIP. The STIP, according to MoDOT, is a list of nearly 1900 highway and bridge projects that are planned by state and regional agencies. A draft of the STIP was released in June for public review and comment. The plan focuses on maintaining the existing system by investing annually in more than 1,000 lane miles of interstate pavements, more than 1,300 miles of major route pavements, more than 2,600 miles of minor route pavements, and 213 bridges. The STIP details annual construction averaging $924-million per year for five years which, according to MoDOT, falls short of what’s needed for other high-priority projects by some $825-million per year. Missouri has the seventh largest state highway system ranking 48th in the country in revenue per mile.