OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb. -- The 55th Civil Engineer Squadron has allocated funds to make repairs on Travis Drive, which closed due to a 42 inch cavernous hole that was discovered under the road in July 2019.
“Once the commander and I became aware of the issue, we could not in good faith allow families to continue using Travis Drive,” said Chief Master Sgt. Brian Thomas, the 55th Wing command chief.
The 55th CES had countless projects in 2019, from upgrading gate and anti-vehicle barriers to patching thousands of potholes and completing other various work orders across base, so, the Travis Drive repairs exceeded their workload capacity and budget, said Thomas.
“I know the number one question for someone who lives near Travis Drive is: why hasn’t this process already taken place?” said Col. Allen Dayton, 55th Mission Support Group commander. “The truth is, it just wasn’t in our budget. The erosion was undiscovered until July, and it became something of an emergent request, so, now, we are working through it.”
There’s an eight-step process to get the funds required for repairs.
“We work with the Air Force Civil Engineering Center (AFCEC) and currently we’re on step three,” said Col. Dayton. “We will get to the final step; it’s just going to take time.”
The 55th CES needs to procure a design report, and once they acquire that report it should a couple of months to complete the project.
“The good news is the AFCEC assures us the funding exists,” said Col. Dayton. “So, I’m confident we’re going to get to a new Travis Drive in fiscal year 2020.”