OKLAHOMA CITY – A bill that its authors said would give county commissioners better ways to complete county road and bridge projects quicker was signed into law by Gov. Kevin Stitt last week.
House Bill 3740 increases the cap on costs for road and bridge projects before engineering plans are required. Written by state Rep. Steve Bashore, a Republican from Miami, and state Sen. John Michael Montgomery, R- Lawton, the bill increases the cost threshold from $150,000 to $300,000.
Montgomery said the bill could save money and ensure a better use of taxpayer dollars.
The bill comes of the heels of other efforts to improve county roads and bridges. Two years ago, the Oklahoma Department of Transportation announced a plan that allocated almost $900 million for improvements to the state’s county roads and bridges. That program, which runs through 2025, is set to rehabilitate 313 bridges on the county system and improve 585 miles of county roads, ODOT officials said.
“Oklahoma’s county road network accounts for 60 percent of the state’s bridges and 73 percent of its centerline miles on our state’s transportation system and this funding is fundamental to keeping the ‘off-system’ infrastructure online for years to come,” Tim Gatz, Oklahoma secretary of transportation and ODOT executive director, said in a media statement.
Gatz said the plan covers all 77 counties and includes 209 projects. He said his department would work with county engineers to prioritize projects “of the highest need in each county and make the most of state, federal, local and tribal funding sources.”
Bashore said the adjustments were necessary because the cost of materials had increased. The bill was requested by the Association of County Commissions of Oklahoma.
“The adjustment to the dollar amount was needed because of the rising costs of materials, machinery and labor,” Bashore said. “This will allow county road and bridge projects to be completed in a more timely manner and will allow greater efficiently for our county engineers.”