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Transportation Conference Celebrates Change

January 27, 2005
By: Seth Myers
State Capital Bureau

JEFFERSON CITY - Stakeholders in the Missouri transportation system said they are starting the year with high expectations.

Missouri Department of Transportation executives met with contractors and state legislatures for the annual Transportation Conference Thursday morning at the Capital Plaza Hotel in Jefferson City.

Bill McKena, Chairman of the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission, said he feels good about Missouri's transportation situation.

The department reported a substantially better financial position Thursday than they did in 2004. Last year the transportation department was struggling to find funding after the sound defeat of Proposition B at the polls.

This year the conference celebrated the passage of Amendment 3 in Nov., and the appointement of a new director.

"We continue to celebrate the passage of Amendment 3," McKena said. "It is one of the best things to happen to Transportation in years."

Through bonds and financing available through the Amendment, the department will be able to spend $1.7 billion on road construction and improvements over the next few years.

The Missouri Department of Transportation's newly appointed director, Pete Rahn, was highly praised by members of the commission and contractors for improvements he has already made to the department, and for his dedication to continuing improvements to all aspects of the Missouri transportation system.

A few weeks into his new job Rahn held a departmental conference to develop a mission statement. They decided the Missouri Department of Transportation should provide a world class transportation experience that delights it's customers.

Rahn said he plans to earn the trust of the Missouri people by showing them performance and then the department will be just as successful in the following years.

"Each year can be a celebration of success, just as this year is," Rahn said.