Daily News Briefs, June 28, 2019

NCDOT Hosts Open House on Forthcoming I-485 Express Lanes Construction

WCNC reports that North Carolina DOT and the state’s turnpike authority hosted a public open house yesterday “to discuss plans for the I-485 Express Lanes before construction starts this summer.” In addition to providing a new general purpose lane, the project will create one dynamically tolled express lane in each direction within the I-485 median between I-77 and US 74 (Independence Boulevard) “to improve traffic flow.”

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State Farm Sponsors WV Turnpike's Roadside Assistance Service

MetroNews reports, State Farm Insurance has become the official sponsor of the West Virginia turnpike’s Courtesy Patrol roadside service, which has been renamed, “WV Turnpike State Farm Safety Patrol.” The article notes, “State Farm, which is the largest provider of auto insurance in the United States, sponsors similar highway safety patrol programs in 19 other states, and becomes the first company to sponsor a state service in West Virginia.”

A gubernatorial news release has more information on the safety patrol and State Farm’s sponsorship.

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PA Turnpike Anticipates Record July 4 Holiday and Launches New Website

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports, “Pennsylvania Turnpike officials expect more than 6 million motorists will travel on the toll road over an extended Independence Day holiday beginning Friday and continuing through July 7. Lower prices at the pump are a likely factor in that predicted traffic figure, which represents a 3.5% jump from the same period last year, according to the turnpike.”

In a news release, the turnpike commission (PTC) announced creation of a new website, “Ramp Up for Summer Travel,” to assist motorists with “tools and tips for traveling.” PTC noted that summer is its busiest season, “with many motorists traveling the roadway for the first time.”

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Workers Demolish Remains of Genoa's Collapsed Tollway Bridge

Reuters reports, earlier today, controlled explosions brought down the remains of Genoa, Italy’s, Morandi Bridge, the toll road viaduct that collapsed last August, causing 43 deaths. The article notes that two Italian firms, Salini Impregilo and Fincantieri, have already started construction of a replacement based on a design by architect Renzo Piano. “It remains unclear whether the government will keep its promise to revoke the concession of toll road operator Autostrade per l’Italia, a unit of infrastructure group Atlantia which was in charge of the bridge’s maintenance,” according to Reuters.

BBC News has video of the demolition.

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90-Year-Old Toll Collector's Long Association with RITBA's Pell Bridge

The Newport Daily News profiles Donald Richardson, a 90-year-old Newport Pell Bridge toll collector who had a previous career as a Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority maintenance worker. According to the newspaper, Richardson “has grown up with the Pell Bridge; he remembers the debates over its construction, the celebration when it was unveiled and the manual labor he put into it as a maintenance worker. Now, as a toll collector, he recalls the frustration and impatience of people who must sometimes wait in line to pay the bridge toll.” (RITBA is celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of the bridge’s opening this year.)

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