New Online Game Allows You to Spend
the State’s Transportation Dollars

JEFFERSON CITY - If you were the director of the Missouri Department of Transportation, how would you pay for transportation services and what would you make a priority? A new online game is giving citizens the chance to call the shots.

A funding allocation game, found on the MoDOT Web site at www.modot.org challenges players to take care of the state’s roads and bridges, as well as other modes of transportation that include aviation, waterways, public transportation and rails. It poses questions about freight, safety, technology, bicyclists and pedestrians.

“One of the biggest challenges we face is how to pay for all the transportation services and improvements Missourians tell us they want,” said Pete Rahn, MoDOT director. “How we invest our transportation dollars says a lot about our priorities and has a major impact on the state’s economic engine. We’ve developed this online challenge to see how you would fund the priorities.”
The game summarizes players’ results and tells the player how he compares to others throughout the state. It also shows players the current funding allocation MoDOT follows.

“It’s not an easy task,” Rahn said. “There are many factors that go into deciding how much money is allocated to each transportation priority. Some of these factors are beyond MoDOT’s control, such as federally mandated funding. But for those we do control, there is much research and debate before the final decision is made.

“Our mission is to provide you a world-class transportation experience that delights our customers and promotes a prosperous Missouri,” Rahn said. “We want to know what Missourians think because we need everyone’s ideas about how we successfully work together for the sake of Missouri’s future.”

The game is part of MoDOT’s Missouri Advance Planning or MAP initiative, which is a long-range planning effort based on public participation. It includes a statewide dialogue about what Missouri’s transportation system could and should do for its citizens and how best to fulfill the expectations. For more information about MAP or to offer comments, visit the project Web site at www.mapourfuture.org