Funding OK’d for local road project

VW independent staff/submitted information

The intersection of U.S. 30 and Liberty-Union in Van Wert is one of 18 projects being considered for state funding for future improvements.

According to the Ohio Department of Transportation, $1.4 million will be spent on preliminary engineering to remove the at-grade intersection at U.S. 30 with Liberty-Union and realign to connect to the U.S. 224/U.S. 30 interchange. Plans also call for the widening of Washington Street between U.S. 30 and Bonnewitz Ave. It’s classified as a Tier II project, meaning it’s a project recommended for additional environmental, design or right-of-way development activities necessary before it would be available for construction. If approved, funding is scheduled for Ohio fiscal year 2025.

It’s the only local or area project on the list. There were 28 applications submitted this year.

TRAC operates on an annual application cycle. At the completion of the application process TRAC members vote on the approval of the Major New Construction Program List of funding commitments for preliminary engineering, detailed design, right-of-way and project construction. Projects receiving funding commitments are placed into three tiers based upon the level of project development:

• Tier I – The group of projects recommended for construction during the upcoming four-year construction period.
• Tier II – The group of projects recommended for additional environmental, design or right-of-way development activities necessary before the projects would be available for construction.
• Tier III – The group of projects with previous phases funded for construction in Tier I. Projects placed in Tier III status are part of a long-range funding plan to advance multiple phase projects.

The Transportation Review Advisory Council was established by Ohio Revised Code in 1997 to help ODOT develop and modify a project selection process which approves funding for the development and construction of the Major New Capacity Program.

The TRAC has nine members and is chaired by the Director of ODOT. Six members are appointed by the Governor and one each by the speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives and the president of the Ohio Senate. Members have overlapping terms. The Director provides funds for new construction only after assuring that system preservation needs have been met. The use of the new construction funds is the responsibility of the TRAC, but the TRAC does not have authority over other aspects of the Department of Transportation.