June 8, 2023

Public comment period open on draft STIP

The draft fiscal year 2024-2028 Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) was presented to the Missouri Highways & Transportation Commission on June 7. The draft five-year program includes funding from General Revenue – passed by the Missouri General Assembly – to widen and improve I-70, fix low-volume minor roads, upgrade railroad safety crossings and more. A 30-day public review and comment period begins today.

The STIP makes available $14 billion of federal and state revenues for all modes of transportation over the next five years. Of the $14 billion, the draft STIP details $10.5 billion in road and bridge construction contractor awards, averaging approximately $2.1 billion per year. It also includes a record $3.4 billion in state General Revenue funded projects from the General Assembly subject to governor approval of the final budget.

“Over the past two years, the cost of doing transportation improvements has experienced record inflation ranging from 20-30%. Aside from the new funding from the General Assembly, this year’s program didn’t add a significant number of projects to the last two years as we manage the fiscal constraints of the funding,” said MoDOT Director Patrick McKenna. “We are able to continue our asset management efforts while also making critical improvements and upgrades to corridors and safety features across the state.”

The draft FY 2024-2028 STIP lists transportation projects planned by state and regional planning agencies for fiscal years 2024-2028 (July 1, 2023 - June 30, 2028) and reflects the transportation needs of communities across the state. The proposed program is available for public review and comment until July 6, 2023 and is available on MoDOT's website.

Following the public review, the comments will be presented to the Missouri Highways & Transportation Commission. The Commission will review the comments and the final transportation program before considering it for approval on July 12, 2023.

June Commission summary

At its June 7 meeting, the Missouri Highways & Transportation Commission heard a presentation from the City of Springfield, including the chamber of commerce, Greene County and the Ozarks Transportation Organization.

Director McKenna thanked the governor for his leadership and the General Assembly for their focus on transportation investments. McKenna also discussed the release of the draft Statewide Transportation Improvement Program and reflected on the record-breaking construction year for road and bridge projects in Missouri. MoDOT has awarded $1.8 billion in contracts since last July. McKenna shared that on any given day in Missouri, there are more than 1,000 work zones for road and bridge construction and maintenance work, emphasizing a serious reminder to always stay alert and focused when behind the wheel so everyone goes home safe.

Last week's action at the federal level to raise the debt ceiling could impact projects in Missouri. Part of the debt reduction actions cut various COVID-19-era funds that have gone unspent. MoDOT was at risk of losing tens of millions of dollars, but quick action by the MoDOT team resulted in no loss of funds.

Read the full meeting summary, which topics include: Director's Report, Consideration of Bids, Southwest District Update, MoDOT Management System Update, MoDOT Fiscal Year 2024 Budget and FY2024-2028 Draft Statewide Transportation Improvement Program.

June marks the month of staff appreciation, where managers display their appreciation and gratitude for their team's hard work. However, managers should focus on showing appreciation and gratitude more than just a few weeks a year. Showing it daily or weekly can help keep employees satisfied and invested in their teams.

Review the following courses to help create new ways of showing appreciation to your team members:

• How to Build a Culture of Appreciation as a Manager.
• The Surprising Power of Seeing People as People.
• Be the Manager Who Fights for Their Team.
• Rewarding Employee Performance.

This time of year, people often take advantage of the warmer weather and longer days to spring clean. If you’re in the mood for a spring cleaning but don’t know how to start, keep these tips in mind.

Purge: Get rid of items you haven’t used for more than a year or things that are broken. If you are having trouble, ask yourself:

• When was the last time I used this?
• When will I use this again?
• Does this have so much sentimental value that I can’t live without it?
• Is this item expired or no longer useful?

Sort: Many home organization experts promote the “Four Box” method – using four boxes to categorize items:

1. Put Away: For items that should be put back in their appropriate place.
2. Sell or Give Away: For items that are no longer of use to you but could be useful to others. 
3. Store: For items you need to keep but don’t have to be kept out. 
4. Throw Away: For anything you haven’t used in a long time, you don’t think you’ll use in the foreseeable future and that has no actual or sentimental value.

Clean Walls: Start with a damp cloth and wipe away dirt or dust. If stubborn stains remain, dilute a small amount of dishwashing soap in a bucket of water and use it to gently scrub away the stain.

Wash Blinds: Wide, slatted blades can be wiped down with a gentle cleaner. Aluminum blinds should be taken outside and scrubbed with warm water and gentle soap. 

File: Invest in a filing cabinet. One afternoon spent organizing files will pay off in the long run. Sort paperwork by document type, and make a folder for each category. 

Finalize: Check each room in the house, including the attic and basement. Also check the garage, yard and shed. Examine, clear and repair:

• Frayed or damaged appliance cords, wiring, fuses or breakers.
• Trash or yard debris.
• Stacks of paper and magazines that can be recycled.

The Kansas City District closed the Blue Ridge Boulevard bridge over Interstate 70 on May 31 in preparation for its demolition. Crews demolished the bridge over I-70 on June 3, requiring the total closure of portions of I-70 in each direction.

This demolition was completed ahead of schedule in 24 hours. The event received a lot of positive feedback on social media, and one customer was thrilled by our efforts informing and responding to the public on social media. 

"I applaud all of them, and the planning team, for the efforts. Wow. You all could write a manual on 'how to do it anyway.' Great job! Seriously, very impressive.”

This is all part of the project to replace the Blue Ridge Boulevard bridge over I-70, as well as make interchange improvements to the ramps and approaches. Motorists should anticipate various lane closures, ramp closures and bridge work through approximately the end of 2023.

This bridge is included in Gov. Parson’s $351 million Focus on Bridges Program which will repair or replace 250 bridges across the state. For more information, visit the project webpage.

Nearly 6,000 travelers in Brewer are happy to see the recent repairs to Route 61. 

The area, located near Route M, was previously a frequent maintenance issue, as the existing shoulder was settling. Maintenance forces periodically placed aggregate to fill the depressed areas, but the issue soon became elevated and an interdepartmental effort. 

With help from the Design, Construction & Materials and Maintenance divisions, a plan to permanently repair the area was developed. Maintenance funding was used to expediate repairs, and it did not have to go through the typical Statewide Transportation Improvement Program amendment process. 

The contract work involved excavating the shoulder material. Near the depths of the excavation limits, rock outcroppings were found leading to what appeared to be the sinkhole opening. The rock outcroppings were partially covered with rubbish, brush and stumps. To prevent future settlement issues, this material was removed and replaced with rock layers of various sizes.

“The contractor, Putz Construction, LLC, worked very efficiently in completing this project and restoring traffic back to two lanes,” said Resident Engineer Darius Dowdy. 

The project started May 22 with the installation of temporary traffic signals to guide traffic through the one-lane work zone. By June 2, the work was completed, and the roadway was restored to two-way traffic.

Motorists traveling on Interstate 70 in St. Charles County may have noticed large cranes in the middle of the interstate. It’s all part of ongoing construction for the I-70 Cave Springs to Fairgrounds Design-Build project.

As part of the work to reconstruct the interchanges at Cave Springs and Zumbehl Road, traffic was moved to the first half of the new Zumbehl overpass over I-70. The old Zumbehl bridge was then demolished, which required a full closure of I-70. Crews are now working to complete the second half of the new overpass.

When the single-point urban interchange (SPUI) is complete, it will allow for opposing left turns to be made simultaneously, compared to the previous diamond interchange that had two signals for the I-70 ramps. With only one set of traffic signals, more vehicles can make the turn and clear the interchange in one cycle. SPUIs also allow for long, gradual turns, giving larger vehicles more room to navigate.

The new interchange will also include the extension of the entrance ramp from Zumbehl to westbound I-70 and the exit ramp from eastbound I-70 to Zumbehl.

Crews will soon be moving traffic to the first half of the new Cave Springs overpass, and a full closure of I-70 at Cave Springs will occur to demolish the old overpass in late June. 

Crews also recently placed the arch structure that will carry Veterans Memorial Parkway (VMP) under Cave Springs.

Drivers traveling between eastbound I-70 and Cave Springs are now using temporary ramps between the interstate and VMP. A stretch of VMP at Cave Springs is temporarily one-way to maintain access to and from I-70. Until the end of the year, VMP traffic will only be able to go eastbound between Cave Springs Boulevard and Mexico Road.

This project is a partnership with St. Charles County, who has contributed $10 million of the total $62 million cost, and it allows for potential future expansion of I-70. 

This section of I-70 was built in the 1950s and 1960s, making it one of the oldest sections of interstate in the country and one of the busiest in Missouri.

In the Kansas City District on May 30, customer Doris Graves' car was broken down on Interstate 49 near Blue Ridge Boulevard for about an hour, and she was afraid due to the traffic and situation.

Motorist Assistance Operator Micheal Maynard came to her rescue, and she wanted to express her joy! Thank you, Mike!

June service anniversaries

35 Years

Roy Hogsett NE

Owen Hasson CO

30 Years

Scott Gray NW

Jon Schneider CD

Todd Siebeneck CD

Richard Schneider SL

Daniel Smith CO

25 Years

Jerry Adkison NW

Travis Pennington NW

James Becerra NW

Jeffrey Halbert SL

Robert Willett SL

Craig Switzer SW

Sharon Needham SW

Michael Crannick SE

Mark Croarkin SE

20 Years

Todd Myers NE

Stephen Spire KC

Richard Stone II CD

Michelle Forneris SL

Richard Persinger SW

Anita Clark SE

Jennifer Hosey CO

Jennifer Harper CO

Kristi Hixson CO

15 Years

Michael Warren KC

Nabor Madrigal KC

15 Years Cont. 

Bradley Echols CD

Robert Frazier, Jr. SL

Christopher Green SL

Michael Miller SW

Amy Bryant SE

Barbara Schumacher SE

Shaun Smith SE

Amber Dydell CO

10 Years

Joshua Gilpatrick NW

Christopher Karlin KC

Ericka Ross KC

Vance Chambers KC

Newell Reeser KC

Christopher Driver KC

Kate Marshall SL

Schuyler Noeth SL

Randy Burchell SW

Andrew Bowman SW

Anthony Bales SW

Danielle Eldred CO

Brook Luecke CO

Laura Seabaugh CO

Kellen Burns CO

5 Years

Jessica Ramsey NW

Ronnie Sotelo NW

Toby Lutz NW

Charles Watson NE

Christopher Peterson NE

Marcus Allen NE

5 Years Cont.

Michelle Danback NE

Preston Ross NE

Robert Kerkmann NE

Andrew Walberg KC

Christopher James KC

Clark Hartmann KC

Jason Terrell KC

Connor Weatherby KC

Jeffrey Miles KC

Justin Cole KC

Michael Devault KC

William Vanderfeltz CD

David Roy CD

Jacob Graessle CO

James Rodgers CD

Jason Rivera CD

Josef Frierdich CD

Roger Dothage CD

Benjamin Beckerle SL

Nancy Goodwin SL

Dallas Doyle SW

Douglas Robertson SW

Garrett Evans SW

Vivianna Baban SW

Paul Turner III SE

Cory Scheets SE

Doug Hebblethwaite SE

Mallory Dames SE

Dillon Crowley SE

Davis Vargo SE

Joshua Potts CO

Christopher Hamilton CO

In memoriam

The following retirees passed away:

Virgil L. Case, Jr.

NW – Apr 19

Randall E. Redden

NW – May 23

Albert Williams

NW – May 22

Jean E. Hershey

NE – May 14

Vicki L. James

NE – May 23

James P. Sagaser

NE – May 20

Larry W. See

NE – May 16

Harry C. Scurlock, Jr.

CD – May 23

Donny D. Whittle

CD – May 14

Louis C. Swagulski

SL – May 28

Charles R. Casey

SW – May 15

Johnny L. Aldridge

SE – May 10

Robert L. York

SE – May 16

The mission of Connections is to be a source of MoDOT news

and feature articles that connect employees statewide.

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Editor: Sr. Communications Specialist Bethany Belt

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