Highways & Transportation Commission welcomes new members

Daniel Hegeman and Francis Slay were appointed by Gov. Mike Parson

On Jan. 2, Gov. Mike Parson appointed two new commissioners to the Missouri Highways & Transportation Commission that oversees MoDOT.

Daniel Hegeman of St. Joseph and Francis Slay of St. Louis fill the seats vacated by Brian Treece of Columbia and Robert Brinkmann of Defiance.

Mr. Hegeman currently serves as senior community business manager at Evergy and co-owner of Hegeman Farm, Inc. He serves as the chairman of the St. Joseph Metropolitan Planning Organization and is a board member and former chairman of Second Harvest Food Bank. He is also a former Missouri State Senator and Representative.

Mr. Slay currently serves as executive director for the St. Louis Regional Crime Commission. He is a member of the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis and previously served as Mayor of the City of St. Louis for 16 years.

On MoDOT's website, you can learn more about MoDOT's Commission and read the biographies of all six members.

Help MoDOT "Put the Brakes on Human Trafficking"

January is National Human Trafficking Prevention Month. The month is dedicated to raising awareness about human trafficking. MoDOT and other state DOTs are committed to providing specialized training to employees on how to identify the common indicators of human trafficking and what to do when trafficking is suspected in Missouri. Learn more.

Safety Improvements Project contract awarded

The Missouri Highways & Transportation Commission awarded the Safety Improvements Design-Build Project to West Contracting with Horner and Shifrin, Lochmueller and EDSI. The project will implement around 300 safety countermeasures on MoDOT roads and 50 on St. Louis County roads for $52 million, with St. Louis County contributing $2 million. Learn more.

Gov. Parson's Focus on Bridges program completed

MoDOT celebrated the completion of Gov. Mike Parson’s Focus on Bridges program that restored or replaced 250 of the state’s poorest bridges. This program was one of Gov. Parson's first major transportation investments. The final project reopened to motorists on Dec. 22, 2023, four years after the program's first bridge opened on Dec. 20, 2019. Learn more.

Today in Transportation History - Jan. 11, 1986

The Gateway Bridge opened over the Brisbane River in Queensland, Australia. The opening festivities included approximately 200,000 individuals walking across the new bridge. For the next 15 years, this bridge's main span of 853 feet would be the longest in the world for a prestressed-concrete-free cantilever bridge. Learn more.