Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
The Whitman County six-year Transportation Improvement Plan (T.I.P.) has been updated once more after County Commissioners approved an amendment to the current plan and the adoption of next year’s 2016-21 document.
The plans are a state requirement.
If a capital improvement is made to a road, the T.I.P. calls for updating, which includes a public hearing. Because Public Works has added 2/10-mile to the Almota Road reconstruction project – due to slope issues and difficulty in accessing other roads – the current T.I.P. needed updating.
On July 20, Mark Storey, County Public Works Director, appeared before the commissioners to talk about the Almota addition and present the plan for the next six years.
The first two to three years of the 2016-21 document includes funded projects, from Phase Four of the Almota Road full-reconstruction (from milepost 7.96 – 11.56), county-wide overlays and $400,000 in federally-funded small road and bridge repairs. A two-mile section of Sand Road is also funded for partial reconstruction/widening near Pullman.
Other projects funded and set for the next two to three years include $600,000 in county-wide safety improvements – from signage to guardrails and tree and brush-removal. Another $150,000 in federal money is slated for bridge ratings in the county (structural soundness).
“The rest starts to get wish-listy,” said Storey.
One item on that list is a new asphalt overlay on Farmington road north of the town to Seltice.
“We continue to aggressively pursue money but you can’t count on it ‘til you receive it,” Storey said.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
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