DOT’s North Central Region told the Marathon County Infrastructure Committee on Dec. 4 that the region’s improvement program has grown substantially—moving roughly 90 projects forward and adding about 25 projects—as the improvement budget rose from about $65–75 million per year to roughly $110–115 million.

Mike Kritzmer said the region’s larger program and additional local force account (LFA) capacity allow DOT to target more safety and system-health projects. He said performance-based maintenance funding for the region remains at $2,178,000 for 2026 and that LFAs drawn from improvement dollars can be used for safety-type work when the improvement program schedule does not address an urgent need.

County staff noted that the Highway Safety Commission draft minutes were in the packet and that, following a fatal crash on Highway W on Nov. 22, staff will pursue Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) dollars for a Highway W project planned for construction in 2029. Staff said $90.10 funding listed in the packet could be used on safety items as the county pursues state funding for design and improvements.

Staff also summarized an unusually high number of state projects in Marathon County this year—about 11 projects—which county staff monitor through weekly meetings and participate in for project closeouts.

County highway staff closed by describing seasonal operations: equipment repairs, installing brine systems on trucks, pretreating and treating roads during storms and follow-up pothole and brush work.

Staff said they will pursue the HSIP application and continue to coordinate with DOT on scheduling and funding during upcoming meetings.