Nebraska receives $21 million for I-80 construction

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Gov. Jim Pillen celebrated on Thursday a grant of $21.2 million for reconstruction of Interstate 80 in Buffalo County.

The grant will go toward the Nebraska Department of Transportation for reconstruction of a rural bridge and 9 miles of interstate.

Pillen said this project will provide transportation systems enough access to major cities and distribution centers.

“I-80 is the busiest freight corridor in Nebraska, and freight traffic is only going up,” he said.

The construction project will begin around spring 2026 and will finish toward the end of 2027.

The Odessa-to-Kearney project costs about $35.3 million in total; the grant only covers 60% of this.

The National Highway Performance Program, the Federal Highway Administration and state transportation funds will cover the remaining 40%.

I-80 carries 63% of all vehicle miles in the state and 83% of truck traffic.

Nebraska’s transportation system will annually carry more than 623 million tons of freight, valued at $404 billion, by 2045.

“As a state, we need to be more competitive and capitalize on federal dollars with no strings attached, especially when it comes to funding projects that support Nebraska’s infrastructure and its growth,” Pillen said.