Transportation Commissioner Willie Simmons outlines $200M‑scale recurring funding, project starts in Central Mississippi

Commissioner Willie Simmons of the Mississippi Department of Transportation said this week that a package of recent legislative actions will give the agency recurring funds for maintenance and capacity projects across central Mississippi.

"We should get pretty close to $200,000,000 from that," Simmons said of the recurring revenue established in the 2025 measures, citing the benefits for planning and long‑term paving work.

Simmons told interviewer Cameron Smith that the legislature also allocated roughly $150,000,000 for capacity projects, approved a $40,000,000 match fund and freed more than $500,000,000 for the department’s maintenance program. He said the first $80,000,000 of lottery revenue will continue to flow to MDOT after the Legislature removed a sunset provision that had been scheduled to end the payments in 2028.

Why it matters: Simmons said the recurring dollars let MDOT plan multi‑year work and make pavement and bridge investments without repeatedly seeking one‑off appropriations. He added that directing lottery money to paving will allow the agency to repave two‑lane roads that "had not been paved in 20 years."

On major projects, Simmons highlighted an Interstate 55 widening in Madison County that would expand the corridor to three lanes in each direction and add interchanges and ramps. He said the work is driven by recent industrial growth in the area — including new auto, data and distribution facilities — and estimated the total cost near $200,000,000. "We have to widen the project before we can do the interchanges," Simmons said, and he emphasized MDOT will use median right‑of‑way where possible so traffic need not be fully shut down during construction.

Simmons also discussed Highway 25 (Lakeland Drive) in Rankin County as part of MDOT’s three‑year plan and described a $177,000,000 design‑build project on Interstate 20 from the stack to Wiggins Road that MDOT plans to let this year. The I‑20 project will include paving and interchange improvements; Simmons said traffic will be routed to Highway 80 while work is under way.

Simmons addressed an earlier distribution error that temporarily rerouted gas‑tax receipts to state aid instead of MDOT. He said about $50,000,000 intended for the department was affected but that the issue has been corrected and MDOT should begin receiving the funds on July 1. The state also enacted a phased increase to the motor fuel tax — 3¢ this year and a total 9¢ phased in over three years — which Simmons said will add ongoing maintenance resources.

Budget context: Simmons said MDOT’s budget is roughly 49% federal funds and 51% state funds and that recurring state revenue improves the agency’s ability to prepare projects, take preconstruction steps and let jobs when funding becomes available.

Next steps: Simmons said MDOT is "working every day" to assemble resources and expects to let several of the talked‑about projects this year; he added the agency will continue to seek legislative and federal support where gaps remain.

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