Iowa Department of Transportation officials on Tuesday presented a new five year plan to improve the state’s roadways. Jon Ranney is director of the Iowa DOT’s Office of Program Management. He says $2.6 billion is forecast to be available for highway right of way and construction between fiscal years 2014-2018.
The largest chunk of the spending will be directed at ongoing maintenance to make Iowa’s roads safer. “More than $1.1 billion is programmed for years 2014-18 to modernize Iowa’s existing highway system,” Ranney says.
A number of interstate improvement projects are also part of the five-year plan. Ranney says significant investments will be made on Interstate 29 in Sioux City, I-29/80/480 in Council Bluffs, and I-74 in Bettendorf/Davenport.
A number of multiyear improvement projects that were previously scheduled are part of the five year plan, but the Iowa Transportation Commission is not adding additional segments. Officials are blaming “flat or uncertain revenue at the federal and state level, increasing construction costs, and the need to invest in the existing highway system.”
You can find out more about the plan here.