Interstate 70

Included in the budget passed by lawmakers this session and signed by Gov. Mike Parson in June was around $2.8 billion to expand I-70 to three lanes in each direction. On Wednesday, commissioners approved the first steps of acquiring that money.

The drafted timeline for I-70 construction would start in August, on the stretch of highway between Columbia and Kingdom City moving east-bound, and complete in 2030. Missouri's latest budget allocated $2.8 billion to the project, the largest on the interstate since it opened.

The budget includes a $2.8 billion plan to fully expand Interstate 70 to three lanes in each direction, funding for teacher raises as well as money for public libraries. It also has $50 million to go toward stadium improvements for the World Cup in Kansas City.

The Senate’s plan to go beyond the $860 million initially proposed to expand Interstate 70 remained in the budget agreed to by a Senate-House conference committee Wednesday night. Other Senate positions that remained were state funding for public libraries and the elimination of anti-DEI language in the budget.

The Senate plan would spend nearly $2.8 billion to expand the entire interstate to three lanes each way.

Gov. Mike Parson requested $859 million from the Missouri legislature to widen three sections of Interstate 70, including from Blue Springs to Odessa. But House Budget Committee chair Cody Smith says there's little chance of federal aid for the project.

In addition to proposing cuts to the lawmakers' priorities, Missouri House Budget Chairman Cody Smith, a Republican from Carthage, wants to cut all aid to libraries in retaliation for a lawsuit challenging a new state law.

Truck drivers have a limit: 14 hours. After that long work day, they have to park. The truck has to stop and it can’t move again for 10 hours. But finding a place to park an 80-foot-long semi can be a nightmare, one that endangers truckers and slows down commerce. Truckers have been struggling for decades to get Washington to do something about it.

Rep. Sam Graves represents the largest Congressional district in Missouri. With a high-profile new position chairing the U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Graves has a big platform and plans to use his influence to bring a lot of highway funding home to Missouri.

The Tarkio Republican recently became chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Graves says he's talked with Gov. Mike Parson about steering federal money to widen portions of Interstate 70.

Missouri Governor Mike Parson’s budget proposals are attracting some surprising support — from Missouri Democrats. We’ll find out why and get a Democratic take on the legislative year ahead.

Missouri Sen. Bill Eigel, who is considering running for governor in 2024, said the state's $6 billion cash balance should go to ‘big infrastructure projects.’ No one is sure how much it would cost to widen I-70.