Motor fuel tax dollars to DeWitt County have been frozen by the Illinois Department of Transportation, but local officials are optimistic the freeze will be temporary and those dollars should be accessible very soon.
DeWitt County Board Chair Joe Witte tells Regional Radio the issue stems back to December when the County received a notice about paperwork for various projects not being complete.
According to Witte, the temporary freeze has become an issue for DeWitt County township road commissioners as they try to order supplies for this year's summer maintenance work.
Witte admits, one of the issues at play is the short-staffed nature of the County Highway Department. Witte indicates the County only employs its full-time engineer, Mark Mathon, however, two vacant positions remain. The County Board recently took action to provide relief to Mathon in this circumstance.
Witte indicates the project most impacted by the freeze of MFT dollars has been the repair of the Washington Bridge in rural DeWitt County - which has been out of commission for a couple of years now.
