Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Whitman County commissioners Dec. 17 approved an amendment to the county’s six-year transportation improvement plan to add $151,000 from the Federal Highway Infrastructure program, part of a planned allocation that sent $18.1 million to counties around the state.
The $151,000 will be added to what is estimated to be a $5.5 million Almota Road reconstruction project which is expected to be done this summer.
A 13.5 percent match from the county’s road department fund is required for the project.
“Just gives us a greater ability to build the project as best we can, said Dean Cornelison, Whitman County assistant engineer.
Almota Road reconstruction, phase four, will cover 4.5 miles, between Onecho Bible Church and Union Flat Creek.
The Federal Highway Infrastructure program requires the grant funds to be allocated for a construction project over a two-year span.
The last segment of work planned on Almota Road, actually tagged phase three, extends from Union Flat north to Colfax.
County commissioners also approved moving $220,000 to go to a road safety project for next year, to be funded mostly by $610,000 in grant money received last January from the Federal Highway Safety Improvement program.
The money is slated to be spent on 28 miles of centerline rumble strips and guardrail.
Rumble strips will go in on Endicott Road, Albion Road, Pullman-Albion Road, Palouse Cove Road and Pullman Airport Road. The guardrail will be installed on stretches of Pullman-Wawawai Road and Wawawai Road. In addition, the county will repaint stripes on multiple county roads.
The project engineer’s estimate is between $650,000 to $700,000 with a bid call expected to go out in February.
The project is 100 percent funded, no match required.
In July, county commissioners approved a preliminary six-year transportation improvement plan, updating the annual spreadsheet to cover 2019-2024, including a list of continuing projects and new items.
For the next three years, all projects are funded, with money still hoped-for 2022-24.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
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