Free Republic

Across Missouri, about 900 state road and highway bridges are rated in “poor” condition by Missouri Department of Transportation inspectors. In Southwest Missouri alone, that number is a little more than 200. MoDOT officials say the problem — money, or the lack there of — is not anything new. Without a big infusion of new money coming into the state’s road budget, the number of bridges with a “poor” designation likely won’t improve much. and while sources for new revenue are on state and federal tables, they still have obstacles that would have to be overcome. MoDOT officials say being...

Here in McDonald County Missouri it may not look like much right now, but this is going to be Interstate 49 in a few months. We were standing on what’s called the Missouri-Arkansas Connector, this is the portion of the Bella-Vista bypass that MPDOT is responsible for, and so far things are going just as scheduled. Right now the only traffic on the future I-49 is construction traffic. The Bella Vista bypass is a joint venture between ARDOT and MODOT. Each state is responsible for its own road. In Missouri they are on the hook for just over 5 miles...

PINEVILLE, Mo. — Gregg Sweeten had difficulty last week putting his reaction into words. When he learned that funding for the long-sought Bella Vista Bypass had been found, Sweeten, the Pineville mayor and McDonald County emergency manager, was stunned. Then he was elated. "That is amazing," Sweeten said. "That is going to be so great. I think it’s going to lead to all kinds of opportunities not only for Pineville but for McDonald County. I mean, it’s just — I just can’t say how happy I am. Wow. That is ... that’s wild. That’s amazing. That’s a Christmas present right...

Wednesday, January 26, 2005 Missouri Highways. Safety for All? MoDot is in the process of identifying highway improvements for the coming decade. They have their job cut out for them. Missouri has some of the worst highways in the nation. Anyone who travels to any of our neighboring states knows what I am talking about. It is great to see substantial progress on highways in St Louis and Kansas City. I know they were in need of improvements too. But what about the rest of Missouri? Interstate 70 has become rough and congested. There are ideas put forward to widen...