The Iowa Transportation Commission has approved eight trail projects for two million dollars in funding. Stuart Anderson with the Iowa Department of Transportation says three projects were designated directly for funds by the state legislature. He says the three projects get $30,000 for trails in Crawford County, there was $200,000 in funding for a loop trail around Fairfield, and $185,000 for the construction of the Jewell to Elsworth trail in Hamilton County.
Nearly $565,000 was awarded for the Ankeny to Woodward trail. Anderson says the funding will primarily pay for putting a deck on the former Union Pacific railroad bridge over the Des Moines River, which he was will make a dramatic addition to the trail. Another 100-thousand was award to the Heart of Iowa Nature Trail in Story County.
A couple of river trail projects won money, including 69-thousand dollars for the Maquoketa River Water Trail in Jones County. He says the money will provide some river landings for access to the river. Nearly $800,000 was awarded to the Mississippi River Trail in Scott County for construction of 15 miles of bike trails along Highway 67 from Bettendorf north to Princeton.
The commission also approved $50,000 for a study of a Lewis and Clark Trail corridor along the Missouri River from Missouri to Sioux City. Anderson says there were 46 applications that ended up in the eight awards. Anderson says there is a huge demand for the funding as witnessed by the request of 18-million dollars in funding when only two-million was available. He says there’s clearly a demand for trail money across the state. Anderson says the two million dollars this year was about double the amount of trail money the state has had available the last few years.