Submitted
Governor Laura Kelly and Kansas Transportation Secretary Calvin Reed announced today that 40 local and off-system bridge projects across the state will receive a combined total of $40.25 million as part of two local bridge improvement programs capitalizing on new revenue from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL).
“Kansas’ local bridges are critical to connecting communities and to economic opportunities,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “These projects increase infrastructure stability and safety across the state by enabling needed bridge maintenance, repair, and replacement.”
Combined with matching funds from the awarded cities and counties, the total project value is over $45.2 million. By reshaping the local bridge programs to take advantage of BIL, the Kansas Department of Transportation more than doubled its annual funding as part of the existing Eisenhower Legacy Transportation Program (IKE).
There are more than 19,000 bridges on local road systems across Kansas. And nearly 5,000 of those bridges need updates for today’s standards.
“Local bridges play an important role in moving people and goods through our state,” Secretary Reed said. “With IKE, we have been able to increase the investment in local bridges and provide opportunities to improve these vital connections for our communities.”
KDOT is awarding $20.45 million through the Off-System Bridge program (OSB) in Fiscal Year 2026 to fund 21 projects across the state. About $19.8 million will be awarded by KDOT through the Kansas Local Bridge Improvement Program (KLBIP) in Fiscal Year 2025. The funds will go to 19 bridge replacement projects, and an additional four bridges will be permanently removed from local systems.
The OSB and KLBIP are targeted for city and county bridges in need of replacement or repair that are not on the state highway system. Funds for both programs are awarded through an application process and, in most cases, require a local contribution. KDOT uses selection criteria that include bridge condition, detour length, inability to carry legal loads, and past project history.
For this cycle of the local bridge programs, KDOT received a combined total of 170 applications requesting $162.3 million.
The list of recipients and project locations for KLBIP and OSB are below. A link to a map showing the projects can be found here.
Projects in our listening area:
Republic County
Nickel Road, 2.0 miles east of Belleville
Local Contribution: $62,791
Local Cost Percentage: 8.1%
Maximum Funds Awarded: $800,000
Smith County
M Road, 2.0 miles south and 3.0 miles west of Smith Center
Local Contribution: $54,601
Local Cost Percentage: 6.0%
Maximum Funds Awarded: $1,000,000
Dickinson County
1900 Avenue, 2.0 miles south and 1.6 miles east of Abilene
Local Contribution: $186,922
Local Percentage Match: 10%
KDOT Match Funds: $1,230,000
Funds for Bridge Removal:$170,000
Total Funds Awarded: $1,400,000
Clay County
Broughton Road over Finney Creek south of 17th Road
Local Contribution: $188,374
Local Percentage Match: 10%
KDOT Match Funds: $1,100,000
Funds for Bridge Removal:
Total Funds Awarded: $1,100,000
McPherson County
Arapaho Road, 3.0 miles south and 0.5 miles west of Inman
Local Contribution: $209,953
Local Percentage Match: 15%
KDOT Match Funds: $950,000
Total Funds Awarded: $950,000
Ellsworth County
Avenue J, 0.5 miles east and 1.3 miles south of Black Wolf
Local Contribution: $136,776
Local Percentage Match: 5%
KDOT Match Funds: $1,250,000
Total Funds Awarded: $1,250,000