In This Issue

	Woman dies in Big Dig Collapse
	DOTs' work to Reduce Fuel Consumption
	Feds Approve Allegheny River Light Rail Extension
	Employers Encourage Mass Transit
	Funding a Crumbling Transportation System
	OH Nominee Promoting Turnpike Lease
	New Toll Program for Tampa Expressway
	Michigan Traffic Expected to Worsen
	$2 Billion Plan Praised by Trans. Chief
	A Glimpse of Public's Opinion of Toll Roads

Woman dies in Big Dig Collapse

BOSTON - A woman was crushed in Boston Wednesday after 12 tons of concrete fell from the ceiling of the Big Dig. Her new husband was able to crawl through a window to safety. This tragedy has led to even more questions about the safety of the $14.6 billion underground highway and tunnel system

Authorities say a steel rod "tieback" holding a 40-foot section of roadway suddenly gave way when the ceiling fell. The collapse in a connector section of Interstate 90 followed a harsh winter for the ambitious infrastructure project which faced floods, falling debris, and concerns about construction methods.

Close to 200,000 vehicles travel along the Big Dig roads every day.

The recent disaster fueled Mitt Romney's fight for the resignation of Massachusetts Turnpike Authority chairman, Matthew J. Amorello over management of the Big Dig, a power struggle that has lasted several years. Romney said he understands why motorists might be losing confidence in the project. In May, six men who supplied concrete to the Big Dig were charged with providing substandard materials.

DOTs' work to Reduce Fuel Consumption

Illinois, Missouri - The Illinois Department of Transportation is planning a summer long fuel conservation effort to build up fuel stores heading into winter. The department hopes to save five percent, or 72,000 gallons by encouraging carpooling and reducing highway mowing.

IDOT's Division of Aeronautics is also suspending one roundtrip shuttle flight per day between Springfield and Chicago, which will save 9,600 gallons of fuel by the end of the summer.

The Missouri Department of Transportation is decreasing fuel use as well by mowing interstate grass less frequently. MoDOT's 4,000 state vehicles use ten million gallons of fuel each year, according to MoDOT spokesman Chris Sutton. He emphasized the importance of using taxpayers' money frugally.

Feds Approve Allegheny River Light Rail Extension

Penn. - The $435 million North Shore Connector project appears to be on its way after receiving two key approvals - that of the outgoing Norman Mineta and from the Office of Management and Budget. The final three approvals appear in to be in line as well, from the Port Authority Board, from Congress following a 60-day review, and from the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission.

The Connector will extend the Light Rail Transit system via twin tunnels under the Allegheny River. The Federal Transit Administration is expected to sign an agreement in September pledging full-funding -- $348 million. If everything goes as planned, the three-year project will break ground in the fall.

The Port Authority Board is expected to award a $156.5 million contract to the joint venture of West Mifflin-based Trumbull Corp. and Japan-based Obayashi Corp. this week. Planning, engineering, and environmental clearance has already cost $48.4 million, according to project records.

Feds Approve Allegheny River Light Rail Extension

Penn. - The $435 million North Shore Connector project appears to be on its way after receiving two key approvals - that of the outgoing Norman Mineta and from the Office of Management and Budget. The final three approvals appear in to be in line as well, from the Port Authority Board, from Congress following a 60-day review, and from the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission.

The Connector will extend the Light Rail Transit system via twin tunnels under the Allegheny River. The Federal Transit Administration is expected to sign an agreement in September pledging full-funding -- $348 million. If everything goes as planned, the three-year project will break ground in the fall.

The Port Authority Board is expected to award a $156.5 million contract to the joint venture of West Mifflin-based Trumbull Corp. and Japan-based Obayashi Corp. this week. Planning, engineering, and environmental clearance has already cost $48.4 million, according to project records.

Funding a Crumbling Transportation System

Calif. - California's $116 billion budget to improve levees, schools, and other eroding facilities could all be spent on the state's crowded highway system and it still wouldn't be enough. The unfunded needs of the state's transportation system has been given a cost of over $140 billion, according to Sunne Wright McPeak, secretary of the state Business, Transportation and Housing Agency.

The state plans to spend $21 billion on road maintenance and improvements over the next five years, and hopes to get additional funding from the $37.3 billion in bond measures on the November ballot. $11.5 billion of the bond would go to highway projects throughout the state, and $400,000 to cities and counties, leaving about $7 billion for the state's $116 billion infrastructure plan.

The California Transportation Commission describes their highway system as "shambles."

"I'm convinced that there isn't enough money," said Martin Wachs, director of Rand Corp.'s transportation program, which sets up some overwhelming choices for where to spend the limited funding.

OH Nominee Promoting Turnpike Lease

Ohio - The Republican nominee for Ohio governor, Ken Blackwell, is promoting his plan to lease out the Ohio Turnpike, saying it would net the state $6 billion up front.

Blackwell's democratic opponent, Ted Strickland, compared the plan "to the person in the old testament who sold his birthright for a bowl of soup. It might provide some modest short-term benefit, but negatives attached to it are possibly quite severe and should be considered."

Blackwell noted that Illnois netted $1.82 billion in exchange for Chicago's 99-year lease on its Skyway toll bridge.

Turnpike Executive Director Gary Suhadolnik said similar leasing agreements already exist in other states and would provide a windfall. He said a private company leasing the turnpike would be under pressure to raise tolls to make a profit, to finance the lease agreement, and to maintain the roadway. He said the commission is under pressure to reduce tolls.

Cars on the turnpike currently generate $57 million a year for Ohio in gasoline taxes alone, and Suhadolnik says the turnpike is self-sustaining.

New Toll Program for Tampa Expressway

TAMPA - Occasional travelers on Tampa's Lee Roy Selmon Expressway may soon be able to drive on the new elevated lanes without the SunPass transponder. The Turnpike Enterprise is introducing a pilot program this fall that uses prepaid accounts like the SunPass, but without having to buy the $25 transponders.

The new lanes will still be restricted to SunPass users during rush hour when the road opens in August. The new program would use 20 high-speed video cameras to record the license plates of cars who have enrolled in the prepaid program. Cars not enrolled would have 72 hours to arrange payment of their toll with the agency, or face a $100 penalty.

Cameras are already used on the expressway to catch driving passing through without paying. The upper lanes will not have toll booths, just Sunpass sensors and cameras. The enterprise believes the new program will be popular with locals who drive into Tampa once in awhile, and possibly with rental car agencies.

The cost of the program has not been determined, but enterprise spokeswoman Christa Deason said the tolls would likely exceed the amount paid through SunPass, which is $1. Cash users will pay $1.25 for the expressway.

This kind of transparency will only grow as transportation professionals key in on how to make travel more convenient and seamless. We would do well to figure these strategies out sooner than later. What can your agency do to make the system more user friendly to residents and non-residents alike. TW

Michigan Traffic Expected to Worsen

Mich. - The state of Michigan may be facing serious highway congestion problems by the year 2026, according to The Road Information Program, or TRIP -- a nonprofit research group in Washington, D.C.

The group, which studies highway transportation issues, reported that the Michigan Interstate system has been saving the state's residents $27.6 billion annually - or about $2,728 per person - in safety benefits, saved time, reduced fuel and lower consumer costs.

"Our interstate system has pretty much paved the way for the economic vitality of America - where it has gone and is continuing to head toward, over the past 50 years," said Mike Nystrom, vice president of government and public relations for the Michigan Infrastructure & Transportation Association.

The reports findings also said that travel on Michigan's interstate system could increase by 40 percent in the next 20 years, and suggests Michigan should find a way to handle the increase.

"We're always looking at ways to get things done," said Bill Shreck, director of communications for the Michigan Department of Transportation. "We'll probably have a better feeling in another year or so to see how people react to higher gas prices and how that affects gas tax revenue. With higher energy costs, we need to see how people adjust their habits to these new expenses."

$2 Billion Plan Praised by Trans. Chief

OKLAHOMA CITY - Oklahoma's transportation director said a $2 billion spending plan for the state's transportation network over the next ten years will change the face of the region.

Transportation chief Gary Ridley said the plan, approved this spring by the legislature, will allow his agency to replace more than 75 bridges a year including all 137 bridges that are restrict use from heavier vehicles.

The new funding will permit increased preventative maintenance programs for bridges and roads, and hasten the repair of 1,600 deficient bridges and over 4,000 miles of deteriorating highways. The repairs will improve one-third of the state's 12,266 miles of roadways.

The plan allows the transportation department to put an additional $70 million annually toward road maintenance that was previously used to retire road construction bonds. $200 million in new revenue from economic growth will also be dedicated to roads and bridges each year through 2016.

A Glimpse of Public's Opinion of Toll Roads

RALEIGH, N.C. - The results of a recent study gauges the public opinion in North Carolina on implementing toll roads in the triangle area and throughout the state.

"We're trying to see what value people place on their time," said Frank Wilson, of Frank Wilson & Associates, the consulting company which conducted focus groups asking people if they would pay a toll to shorten their commute.

The study focused on attitudes about need rather than dollar amounts. Results found study participants view congestion relief as important, and that tolls are inevitable. However, many with positive views on tolls believed they would not be among users of the tolled roads.

The 13-mile Western Wake Parkway was the exception, where respondents felt the urgent need for congestion relief warrants tolls on the roadway. The parkway and the proposed Triangle Parkway which would extend N.C. Highway 147, together would cost more than $900 million.

"You're looking for as much self-sustainability as you can get," said David Joyner with the North Carolina Turnpike Authority, which requested the study. The Triangle Parkway alone is expected to bring in up to $200 million over the life of the toll road.

Public sentiment continues to move towards acceptance of tolling as a means for delivering transportation projects that are long over-due. Whether it is their recognition that other funding sources are not going to materialize or not they seem to be resigned to the inevitability of tolls in their lives. TW