TOPEKA,
Kan. – For all the hoopla accompanying the federal stimulus package,
its actual effects can seem small, such as the improvements planned on
a 16-mile stretch of two-lane highway in rural northwestern Kansas.
But
Kansas Department of Transportation officials say their plan for adding
narrower-than-usual shoulders on a stretch of K-23 without using a more
expensive process to rebuild the roadway could determine if the state
can use that cheaper method on other lesser traveled highways.
With
nearly 10,000 miles of state highways to maintain, the department is
always looking for ways to save money, but particularly in tough
economic times.
“I don’t see how we can serve the whole state if
we don’t find ways to stretch our dollars more,” Transportation
Secretary Deb Miller said.
The stimulus package, approved by
Congress in February, provides $378 million to Kansas for state and
local transportation projects. By July 1, Kansas needs to have made a
decision on how to spend at least half the money for state highways and
bridges.
“We wanted to look for projects that would create good
solid jobs and sustain good existing construction jobs that would be
under way this summer,” Miller said.
The department estimates the stimulus projects will create 10,000 to 12,000 construction jobs over the next two to three years.
One
reason the section of K-23 from Gove south to the Lane County line was
selected, Miller said, was because the stimulus bill requires some
money to be spent in rural areas with populations under 5,000. Also,
that stretch of K-23 has no shoulders; nearly 150 heavy trucks use it
each day; and the number is expected to double by 2030.