WYDOT gives annual STIP update to commissioners

WYDOT staff came before the Big Horn County Commissioners on July 1 in regards to the annual State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP).

Pete Halsten, District Engineer at WYDOT, told the commission the meeting was designed to get public input. 

“The good news is we are going to be back in January (2026). We are changing how we do our public input for STIP.,” Halsten said. “The way we balance our STIP is, we get budget numbers in March or April. Then we get together in April, we can populate the last year of our STIP. STIP is our six-year budget for construction jobs. Each year we get to add a year to it.” 

He continued that depending on whether they gain or lose money within the six years, they may have to move jobs back. They also factor in if the cost of the jobs has gotten more expensive. 

Halsten referred to a comment made by the mayor of Frannie at last year’s STIP. The mayor expressed concerns over an approach not draining properly. WYDOT did fix the issue. 

An update was given on the Commission Road Improvement Project. (CRIP) The roads in this project are Golf Course Road, Cannery Road and Foster Gluch Road. 

WYDOT’s District Construction Engineer Randy Merritt presented a PowerPoint presentation, with a portion specific to Big Horn County. 

One project was the Worland to Manderson West River/WY Highway 433 pavement rehabilitation. Most of that project is finished. “We ended up sliding a slip line inside a big pipe out there. Luckily, the timing happened that the dip in the road, right at the same time, we were proposing this project,” Merritt said.  

They combined the two contracts. A trackhoe almost fell through the edge of the road due to a material collapse around the pipe. The road had to be closed for a while for safety. 

Also mentioned was the chip seal overlay between Basin and Greybull (U.S. Highway 16/20) that was just finished. They also put pipes in where the Greybull River ties into the Big Horn River. This should help with flooding on that road. 

Other 2025 projects included a Cowley pavement rehabilitation, and transportation funds for the two senior centers in the county. 

Merritt shared that WYDOT had some grant opportunities. Information may be found on their website at www.dot.state.wy.us.