An Orphaned Highway - Central Federal Lands Highway Division

Del McOmie, the WyomingDepartment of Transportation’s(WYDOT) chief engineer, explains theState’s predicament: “The section withinWyoming doesn’t meet the minimumdesign and operating standardsrequired for us to place the highwayinto our State highway system. Thecurrent condition of the highway ispoor, and we can’t afford the addedfinancial burden to bring the roadwayup to an acceptable service level forincorporation into our system.”If these sections of roadwayare upgraded to meet currentstandards, WYDOT will approachthe State transportation commissionand request that it fold thehighway into Wyoming’s maintenanceportfolio. “We’re continuingto work with FHWA and resourceagencies to bring the highway upto State standards so these ownershipand maintenance issues canbe [re]solved,” McOmie says.For its part, MDT is waiting onWyoming before it acts on Montana’swestern portion of the road. “Oncethe highway is up to standards andWYDOT takes over the Wyomingsection, there’s little reason Montanawouldn’t do the same,” says MDTDirector Jim Lynch.Finding PermanentCaregiversResolving the Beartooth’s ownershipand maintenance issues began in earnestin 1994, when NPS asked FHWAto complete an evaluation and needsassessment of the entire Beartoothcorridor. In doing the evaluation,FLHD divided the highway into sevensegments going west to east, beginningwith segment 1 at the parkentrance and ending with segment7 outside Red Lodge. The evaluationdetermined that segments 2 and 3 inWyoming and segments 6 and 7 inMontana met minimum State highwaystandards and were in at leastfair condition because of the 1963–1984 rehabilitations. Segment 5,just north of the Montana-Wyomingline in the east and known as theswitchback section, was rebuilt tomodern standards in the 1970s andis in acceptable condition; however,it has a history of landslides becauseof its extremely steep terrain.On the other hand, segment 1and Wyoming’s 29-kilometer (18-mile)segment 4, from the Clay ButteLookout Road to the summit of3,337-meter (10,947-foot) BeartoothPass and the State line, had neverbeen brought up to modern standards.These sections were deemedin poor condition and in need ofimmediate reconstruction. Theybecame the focus of the overall initiativeto rebuild and modernize theBeartooth.After the evaluation was completed,in 1997, the Montana congressionaldelegation convened a steeringcommittee comprising representativesfrom the Forest Service, FHWA,NPS, WYDOT, and MDT to overseethe highway’s funding, maintenance,and ownership issues. The committeeprovided extensive documentationof potential funding sources andestablished the goal of rebuildingsegment 4 to modern standards by2010. Then Wyoming could considertaking full ownership and maintenanceresponsibility for its sectionof the highway.At about the same time, effortsto improve segment 4 received aThe Beartooth’s narrowroadway and lackof shoulders leavelittle or no room tostore snow when theroad is plowed andopened to traffic in thespring. The resultinghigh snow banksshown here createan additional safetyhazard, but wideningthe roadway will helpalleviate the problem.A common road surfacecondition, known as“alligator cracking,”along segment 4 is alsoevident in this photo,because pavementbreakup caused bypoor drainage allowedwater to permeate thepavement substructure.funding boost. USDA designated$9.8 million for segment 4 from a1998 congressional appropriationthat resulted from a mine settlement(Crown Butte). That sameyear, Congress listed the BeartoothHighway as a “high-priority” projectin the Transportation Equity Actfor the 21 st Century and allowedMontana to spend up to $19.9 millionon any section of the highway,whether in Montana or Wyoming.Some of the Crown Butte moneywas used to install a thin asphaltoverlay on segment 4 in 2001 asa temporary preventive measureuntil the highway could be rebuilt.The money also enabled FLHDto begin design, environmentaldocumentation, and environmentalcompliance for reconstructing thesegment.Segment 1 ReconstructionFLHD secured FHP funds for similarwork on segment 1 as well. ByAugust 1997, the WFLHD office inPUBLIC ROADS • July/August • 2006 23