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Omaha and MAPA urge increased metro funding, stress emphasis study at NDOT hearing
Summary
Speakers from the City of Omaha and the Metropolitan Area Planning Agency (MAPA) told the commission that Omaha’s high‑volume state highways need greater funding and that the metro emphasis study should guide prioritization of limited state and federal resources.
Speakers representing the Omaha metro area told the Nebraska State Highway Commission that heavily traveled state highways within the city require additional support and that regional planning must guide future investment.
An unnamed City of Omaha public works director, speaking during the district‑program public input portion of the meeting, said state highways within Omaha total roughly 305 lane miles and described heavy use at key intersections. “About 95,000 vehicles pass through that intersection,” the director said of a Dodge Street location; at 70th and Dodge the director cited 35,000–45,000 vehicles per day. He said the city receives $600,000 from NDOT annually under a maintenance agreement and asked for greater assistance to preserve high‑use corridors.
Mike Elverson, executive director of the Metropolitan Area Planning Agency (MAPA), thanked NDOT for regional coordination and urged continued support for the Metro Area emphasis study and project prioritization work. He described MAPA’s role as metropolitan planning organization for a multi‑county area and said MAPA and NDOT are jointly pursuing planning efforts and discretionary funding strategies, including applications to the federal Regional Infrastructure Accelerators and project prioritization pilot program.
Both speakers framed the emphasis study as a roadmap for aligning state and federal investments with regional growth and multimodal needs. City and MAPA representatives said discretionary federal opportunities and improved prioritization would be needed to close funding gaps for major metro corridors.
NDOT staff and commissioners acknowledged the city’s maintenance contribution and described ongoing district and statewide analyses that will inform program allocations.
