America’s rural transportation system is in need of repairs and modernization to support economic growth in the nation’s Heartland, which is a critical source of energy, food and fiber. With increases in population and growing employment, rural America is heavily reliant on the quality of its transportation system to sustain further growth. This is according to a new report released this month by TRIP, a national transportation research nonprofit.
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The report, “Rural Connections: Challenges and Opportunities in America’s Heartland,” evaluates the safety and condition of the nation’s rural roads and bridges and finds that the nation’s rural transportation system is in need of immediate improvements to address deficient roads and bridges, high crash rates, and inadequate connectivity and capacity.
The report finds that 21% of Missouri’s rural roads are rated in poor condition – the 13th highest rate in the nation – and 27% are rated in mediocre condition. Nine percent of Missouri’s rural bridges are rated as poor/structurally deficient, the 16th highest share in the U.S.
State bridges in Daviess
The State of Missouri owns nine bridges in Daviess County, all of which are open; three are posted for load.
Open with no restrictions: I-35 Highway 6; I-35 Route KK; I-35 Route DD; I-35 Route C; I-35 Route B; I-35 Route BB; and Route E over Goose Creek.
Posted for load: Route Z over Sampson Creek, Highway 13 over Honey Creek; and Highway 190 over Clear Creek.
County bridges in Daviess
Daviess County bridges are inventoried and inspected by the Missouri Department of Transportation.
There are 152 county bridges, of which seven are closed, according to a list compiled in April of 2018 by MoDOT.
Closed bridges: 330th Street over Clear Creek; 185th Street over Dog Creek; 142nd Street over Marrowbone Creek; Major Avenue over Brushy Creek; 292nd Street over Brushy Creek; Nickel Avenue over South Big River; Elmwood Avenue over Mason Creek.
There are 51 posted bridges.
Bridges that are poor/structurally deficient have significant deterioration to the major components of the bridge and are often posted for lower weight or closed to traffic, restricting or redirecting large vehicles, including agricultural equipment, commercial trucks, school buses and emergency services vehicles.
The rate of traffic fatalities on Missouri’s non-interstate, rural roads is significantly higher than the fatality rate on all other roads in the state – 1.66 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles of travel vs. 1.01.
America’s rural transportation system provides the first and last link in the supply chain from farm to market, connects manufacturers to their customers, supports the tourism industry, and enables the production of energy, food and fiber. Rural Americans are more reliant on the quality of their transportation system than their urban counterparts.
The TRIP report finds that the U.S. needs to implement transportation improvements that will improve rural transportation connectivity, safety and conditions to provide the nation’s small communities and rural areas with safe and efficient access to support quality of life and enhance economic productivity.
“Farmers and ranchers depend on rural roads, highways and bridges for daily life and to move their products to market,” said Zippy Duvall, president of the American Farm Bureau Federation. “Securing the appropriate resources at the local, state and federal levels will allow for the improvements needed to provide a rural transportation system that will keep goods moving, American agriculture competitive and rural Americans safe.”