Counties statewide benefit from updated road and bridges improvement plan
On Monday, the Oklahoma Transportation Commission approved the County Improvements for Roads and Bridges Plan update for Fiscal Years 2024 through 2028 which schedules more than $804 million in improvements to roads and bridges in the state’s 77 counties. This includes the addition of seven bridge projects funded by a major federal grant funding and an emergency repair to a flood damaged bridge.
Designed by the state Legislature to address deficient county infrastructure, the latest plan is set to replace or rehabilitate 176 county bridges – of which 74 are structurally deficient or functionally obsolete – and to improve 395 miles of county roads in the next five years.
“The CIRB program is one of the most important partnerships that the State of Oklahoma has with our county transportation partners. We are proud to work closely with county commissioners to make sure we are making wise investments in the county road system,” said Oklahoma Secretary of Transportation and ODOT Executive Director Tim Gatz
The plan is comprised of 942 projects with all 77 counties represented. The department works with the state’s eight Circuit Engineering Districts that coordinate with counties to prioritize projects of the highest need in each county and make the most use of state, federal, local and tribal funding sources. The plan allows counties to work together to pool resources to address high-priority projects too large for any one county to accomplish. By law, ODOT administers the plan and partners with the counties to oversee the state and federal funds incorporated into many projects.
Since the plan’s inception in 2006, CIRB funding has played a key role in the replacement of 762 county bridges and nearly 2,000 miles of improved county roadways. The plan is updated annually.
Many significant projects across the state are new to the plan this year, including:
· Seven bridge projects in Northern Oklahoma: In April 2023, CED 8 received an $11.5 million grant from the Federal Highway Administration to fund projects for seven bridges located in Garfield, Kingfisher, Major, Noble and Woods Counties.
· Pawnee County: A $16.2 million replacement of the 3500 Rd. bridge over the Arkansas River connecting Pawnee and Osage Counties west of Ralston.
· Kay County: An $11 million project to repair or replace the Hubbard Rd. bridge over the Chikaskia River near Blackwell that was irreparably damaged by flooding in 2019. This project is a partnership between Kay County, the Federal Highway Administration and ODOT.
· Jefferson County: A more than $3 million project to resurface Union Valley Rd. east of US-81 near Terral.
· Latimer County: A $3.5 million project to replace three bridges on EW 146 Rd. south of Red Oak, east of SH-82.
To find a PDF or interactive map of improvements listed for your county’s roads, visit www.odot.org and click CIRB under Projects and Programs/Local Government Resources.
To date, CIRB funds have been involved in nearly $2 billion in construction on the county system. This represents a significant investment in the infrastructure of our state and speaks to the strong partnership between the counties, CEDs, ODOT and many other entities who are involved with bringing this plan to reality each year.
