An effort to construct a bike trail between Columbus Junction and Columbus City is continuing to move forward at the county level, following Tuesday's approval of the project’s plans and specifications during the Louisa County Board of Supervisors’ meeting.

County engineer Adam Shutt presented the request, reminding the board it would be the second go-around for the project, after officials nixed the first proposal in 2019 after bids came in about $90,000 higher than anticipated.

Since that earlier decision was made, Shutt said the city of Columbus Junction has agreed to provide $100,000 in funding assistance, which combined with a previously-awarded $133,000 Transportation Alternative Program grant, should meet Shutt’s $233,000 estimated cost for the work.

According to earlier discussions, the project will involve hard-surfacing a shoulder on Springer/145th Street and County Road X17 between Columbus Junction and Columbus City.

Shutt told the board during its meeting on Tuesday that he is hopeful construction companies that will be in the county this year on other road surfacing work will be able to provide competitive bids on the trail project.