Chase County road director urges application for federal RTA pilot to study Middle Creek and Seaboard roads and bridges

At the Jan. 31, 2025 meeting of the Chase County Commissioners, the county’s Road and Bridge Director recommended applying for the Department of Commerce’s Tribal Assistance/Rural Transportation Assistance (RTA) pilot program to pay for preliminary engineering and planning for Middle Creek Road and Seaboard Road.

The Road and Bridge Director told commissioners the RTA pilot is intended to “level the playing field for rural communities and tribal entities” by funding planning, technical, financial and legal services for projects that will later be submitted for larger DOT grants. The director said the program will open a portal on March 4, offers awards of roughly $200,000 to $750,000 for preliminary work, is 100% funded for up to 36 months, and that about $27 million is being made available nationally with roughly $10 million earmarked for rural projects.

Why it matters: county staff said Middle Creek and Seaboard are under growing stress from newly established quarry operations that have increased heavy truck traffic. Several bridges on the route carry legal weight limits below typical loaded truck weights, and the director warned that continued heavy use risks bridge failure and major disruption to local commerce and residents. “If we can get bridges and that winds up being a gravel road with good bridges on it, we’re still in better shape than we are today,” the Road and Bridge Director said.

Details and county priorities: the director recommended prioritizing bridges on the Middle Creek/Seaboard corridor over surfacing in the event of limited funding, arguing that bridge failures would cause more severe, longer-term disruption. Commissioners discussed that Middle Creek Road includes multiple bridges with varying restrictions (several cited as 37 tons or lower, one as low as 18 tons), and that detours push heavy traffic into Marion County where a 15-ton bridge already restricts trucks. The director said county staff had identified up to seven bridges across the corridor (five on Middle Creek and two on C Road/Seaboard) and asked staff to compile a concise bridge report drawn from the county bridge book showing current ratings and conditions.

Next steps and direction: commissioners agreed to proceed with the RTA pilot application and authorized staff to pursue technical assistance and preliminary planning. The Road and Bridge Director said the county would need to identify a clear end goal for the application (for example, “After we do all this preliminary work, Chase County will apply for this DOT funding for [specified project]”), and requested the commission formally record support in the minutes. The director also reported outreach to the Kansas Infrastructure Hub and the Flint Hills Regional Council for free technical review of application narratives and to obtain additional planning support.

Enforcement and operational concerns: commissioners and staff discussed enforcement limits — county staff do not have truck scales or truck-inspection authority, and current weight limits are not regularly enforced by county maintenance staff. The director said education and targeted traffic stops by law enforcement are the most realistic near-term tools, while long-term solutions require planning and capital funding. Commissioners asked staff to develop contingency plans for bridge failures and to provide bridge-condition summaries for the corridor so the commission can consider capital and multiyear fund uses.

No formal ordinance or bond was adopted; the meeting record shows commissioners supported moving forward with the planning application and requested staff follow up with a bridge report and project budget estimates.