The state hasn't made improvements to some of these ports in years.

MoDOT is increasing it's funding for Missouri ports by more than 600 percent. MoDOT hopes the increase in funding will allow Missouri to be a leader in port development, which means more jobs and growth for the state.

Roy Humphries is an officer at the Howard/Cooper County port authority in Boonville. Ever since he started working here, he's wanted a new truck scale.

"We were weighing on the old scale over at the sand plant, but they were just in such deplorable condition, I wouldn't want to buy my fertilizer either because it's not active weighing," said Humphries.

MoDOT plans to put more than $6.5 million into Missouri ports during the next year. The Mississippi and Missouri rivers combine for 1,050 miles of navigable waterway, one of the nation's largest state totals. There are 13 ports along these rivers in the state.

"Here's an opportunity to make an investment in a mode of transportation that's very energy efficient and in this time of high gas prices, it's especially important that we can look at modes that don't involve as much driving,"explained MoDOT spokesperson Jeff Briggs.

Humphries says the funding is a weight off his shoulders. The Howard/Cooper County port transports grain, corn, and fertilizer throughout the country. The Boonville port is the only public shipping access on the Missouri River between St. Louis and Kansas City.