- Feds OK I-73 Construction Permits. Myrtle Beach, SC, Still Needs $2 Billion Funding, and Tolls Are a Possibility.
- Florida Turnpike Provides Details on a US First: Tolled Express Lanes on a Tolled Interstate
- Opponents of IL Tollway's Route 53 Extension Push for Study of Potential Health Impacts
- Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority Chair Apologizes for Partisan Attacks on Trump and Canadian Conservatives
- RI House Committee Approves Highway Surveillance Bill to Crack Down on Uninsured Drivers -- But Not Toll Scofflaws
- Another Entry in the "Let's Name the Tappan Zee Replacement Bridge" Contest
- NY State Officials Announce "Buy American" Steel, Iron Agreement
- Bill Would Require NY Thruway to Share Grand Island Tolls with Communities Affected by Toll Plaza Pollution, Traffic
- CA City Supportive of 710 Freeway Tunnel Option Retains Law Firm to Analyze Possible Recourses
- MDX Reminds Motorists: Use the Turn Signal
- Environmental Agency Review of Maine Turnpike's York Toll Plaza Relocation Plan Nears an End
- RITBA to Wrap Up Bridge Project This Week
- WV Gears Up to Start Road Work Now as Bond Vote Looms
- Critics Continue to Hit Privatization, Trump Infrastructure Plan
- Public Meeting on Gordie Howe International Bridge Set for Tonight
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Feds OK I-73 Construction Permits. Myrtle Beach, SC, Still Needs $2 Billion Funding, and Tolls Are a Possibility.
The Post and Courier reports, “A long-awaited hurdle appears to have been cleared with the approval of federal construction permits to begin work on an interstate that would connect the Grand Strand [southern beaches] with northern Michigan. But Myrtle Beach area officials still need to raise the money necessary — more than $2 billion — to build the long-discussed Interstate 73 before construction can begin.” (Link inserted.) The newspaper adds, “Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce President Brad Dean has said local officials believe they can raise the money, possibly through a mix of a voter-approved hospitality tax and tolls.”
South Carolina South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT)Florida Turnpike Provides Details on a US First: Tolled Express Lanes on a Tolled Interstate
The Palm Beach Post reports, “An additional toll on a toll road? Yes it’ll be a first in the United States and it’s coming to Palm Beach County. Residents in southern Palm Beach County learned the details Monday night [June 19] of the expansion of Florida’s Turnpike from six to 10 lanes between Glades Road and Boynton Beach Boulevard with the addition of express lanes.”
Express Lanes Florida Florida's Turnpike Enterprise (FTE)Opponents of IL Tollway's Route 53 Extension Push for Study of Potential Health Impacts
Daily Herald reports, “Opponents of a proposed Route 53 extension into Lake County are seeking support for a study to determine potential health impacts of the highway. Representatives of Livable Lake County in association with the Sierra Club Illinois chapter say such an assessment is needed in addition to planned environmental studies.” The report adds that the Illinois Toll Highway Authority has approved a $25 million environmental impact study.
Illinois Illinois State Toll Highway Authority (IL Tollway)Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority Chair Apologizes for Partisan Attacks on Trump and Canadian Conservatives
The Globe and Mail reports, “Dwight Duncan, who oversees construction of a new $4.8-billion bridge between Windsor and Detroit, has issued an apology for using social media to level partisan attacks at federal Conservatives and U.S. President Donald Trump. In a lengthy letter to Infrastructure Minister Amarjeet Sohi on [June 20] . . . , Mr. Duncan said his actions as chair of the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority were disrespectful and showed ‘an obvious lapse in judgment.’” (Link inserted.)
Canada Gordie Howe Int'l Bridge Michigan OntarioRI House Committee Approves Highway Surveillance Bill to Crack Down on Uninsured Drivers -- But Not Toll Scofflaws
Providence Journal reports, “A network of cameras that would watch over Rhode Island highways and automatically fine uninsured drivers won approval from a House committee Tuesday evening [June 20].” The report adds, “Civil liberties groups and insurers oppose the bill, but prime sponsor Rep. Robert Jacquard, D-North Kingstown, said he has made a number of changes to address fears of growing state surveillance and concerns the cameras could be used to expand highway tolling.”
Rhode IslandAnother Entry in the "Let's Name the Tappan Zee Replacement Bridge" Contest
The Journal News reports, “A top state lawmaker wants to name the Tappan Zee Bridge replacement after former Gov. Mario Cuomo.” The report adds, “Lawmakers have introduced no fewer than three bills that would name the replacement for the Tappan Zee, each with a different suggested name.” (The list includes The Purple Heart Memorial Bridge, The Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Bridge, and the Pete Seeger Bridge.)
Governor Mario Cuomo Bridge (Tappan Zee Replacement Bridge) New York State Thruway AuthorityNY State Officials Announce "Buy American" Steel, Iron Agreement
WSTM reports that New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and state legislative leaders announced “an agreement to implement the purchase of American-made steel and iron products by state entities. The ‘Buy American’ legislation requires the Department of Transportation, Thruway Authority, Bridge Authority, Metropolitan Transportation Authority [and other agencies] to provide a contract provision mandating all surface road and bridge projects include use of American-made structural iron and steel unless it can be well argued that using such products in a particular project should be exempted.” (Link inserted.)
Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) New York New York State Bridge Authority (NYSBA) New York State Department of Transportation (NYDOT) New York State Thruway AuthorityBill Would Require NY Thruway to Share Grand Island Tolls with Communities Affected by Toll Plaza Pollution, Traffic
The Buffalo News reports, “The New York State Thruway Authority would have to give 10 percent of the tolls it collects on the Grand Island bridges to three communities affected by pollution and traffic caused by the toll booths” under S6743, a bill introduced by State Senator Chris Jacobs ( R-Buffalo). (The report adds that the legislative session ends this week and the bill is not likely to become law anytime soon.)
New York State Thruway AuthorityCA City Supportive of 710 Freeway Tunnel Option Retains Law Firm to Analyze Possible Recourses
Pasadena Now reports that the City of Rosemead, California, has retained the Blank Rome law firm “to analyze legal issues related to the State Route 710 Project, an indication that the city still wants to pursue the tunnel alternative to the freeway extension. . . .” The LA Metro board of directors voted last month to abandon a toll tunnel option for the 710 improvement project.
Caltrans (CA Department of Transportation) Los Angeles (CA) Metro Region Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro)MDX Reminds Motorists: Use the Turn Signal
Miami Herald reports, “Sharing the road with drivers who neglect or refuse to use turn signals can be hazardous to your mental — as well as physical — health. The reaction to this chronic, annoying, dangerous misbehavior [as documented in a recent article] has been spirited, to the say the least.” The newspaper notes that the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority has “displayed signs reminding drivers that using turn signals is required by law.”
Florida Miami-Dade Expressway Authority (MDX)Environmental Agency Review of Maine Turnpike's York Toll Plaza Relocation Plan Nears an End
Seacoastonline.com reports, “The Maine Department of Environmental Protection is winding down its hearing process on plans by the Maine Turnpike Authority to build a new toll plaza in York.” The newspaper adds that a DEP hearing officer has refused to order MTA to update a 2014 modeling report that was behind its decision not to convert the existing York plaza to all-electronic tolling.
AET (All-Electronic Tolling) Maine Maine Turnpike AuthorityRITBA to Wrap Up Bridge Project This Week
Associated Press reports, “Work to repair the driving surface of Rhode Island’s Mount Hope Bridge is almost done. The state Turnpike and Bridge Authority says concrete repair work to the bridge deck began in mid-March and is scheduled to be complete by Friday [June 23].”
Rhode Island Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority (RITBA)WV Gears Up to Start Road Work Now as Bond Vote Looms
MetroNews reports, “Improvements to West Virginia roads could begin at the start of July, even as the state prepares for a multi-billion-dollar bond vote, the state Transportation Secretary said [Tuesday, June 20].”
MetroNews also reports that Governor Jim Justice “plans to make an announcement about the state budget at 9:15 a.m. [this morning], according to a news release from his office.”
West Virginia West Virginia Department of Transportation (WVDOT)Critics Continue to Hit Privatization, Trump Infrastructure Plan
“The Nation” takes aim at the Trump administration’s infrastructure plans in an article stating, “Critics argue that privatization of public assets like water systems leads to job loss, a decline in service quality, and an increase in waste. Whether through acquiring ownership, assuming management duties, or financing deals with an equity stake, private companies extract a layer of profit that would otherwise be plowed into providing services.”
P3 & PrivatizationPublic Meeting on Gordie Howe International Bridge Set for Tonight
Windsor Star reports, “With construction on the long-awaited Gordie Howe International Bridge scheduled to start next year, the public is invited to attend a meeting [tonight] to learn more about community benefits agreements and a coalition being formed.”
Canada