Issue Position: Improving Our Roads, Bridges & Waterways

Issue Position

Safe and adequate roads, bridges and waterways are critical to attracting economic growth and development to Southern Missouri as well as getting our goods and products to market. I continue to work on a bi-partisan basis with my colleagues in the Missouri Congressional Delegation to secure the federal funds needed to ensure that the infrastructure in the Eighth District is not only safe and adequate, but always improving.

In our rural part of the country, we are often required to travel some distance to reach our grocery stores, pharmacies and churches -- making safe highways and roads even more important. Together we have made numerous improvements, including the widening of Highways 60 and 67 as well as the vital improvements made to Interstate-55. As many in Washington shift their focus to funding mass transportation systems used in urban areas, I remain a vocal supporter for roadways necessary to maintain the quality of life we enjoy here in rural Missouri.

Our proximity to the Mississippi River makes that waterway an efficient and cost-effective way for which our farmers, ranchers, and manufacturers are able to ship their goods to market. To ensure the river remains a viable channel, we must ensure the aging locks and dams are not only maintained, but upgraded. In addition to ensuring the river's transportation capacity, adequate locks and dams are essential to protecting the communities and farmland located along the river from flooding. Unfortunately, these issues don't always receive attention in the media until disaster strikes, but I continue to work every day to safeguard our families and communities from falling victim to that disaster.

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