Connecticut News

[Mergingtraffic]

When I first got into roads in 2002, they were discussing tolls, in 2005 there was a study done on tolls and now in 2015 there are STILL studies being done on tolls.

[Alps]

Realistically speaking I don't think most of "I-84 to providence" is really necessary. East of Willimantic there is nothing wrong with US 6 as is.

If you built it, it would be full of traffic. They're all spread out on US 44, US 6, CT 2, CT/RI 14, CT/RI 101, etc. Some are on I-95, which then gets clogged on weekends, and some may even be on I-84 and MA/RI 146. US 6 itself isn't too bad, and in fact none of these roads is "too bad," but if you take a few hundred off of each of them, you get a busy highway and back roads that are truly back roads, lightly traveled and appropriate for the scale of the area.

In my view, the best solution now is to connect the CT 695 spur to the US 6 freeway outside Providence. Providence would then be signed via CT 2, I-395, and the completed freeway. Though more direct and potentially faster routes may still exist, providing one reasonably direct all-freeway route from Hartford to Providence will reroute a majority of traffic to it. Best of all, there's almost no work to be done in CT.

[connroadgeek]

Completing the highway from Hartford to Providence would certainly open a nice more direct route to the Cape.

[jp the roadgeek]

There's really no development east of Willimantic, so I'm not sure why there's so much opposition to a direct highway from Hartford to Providence other than Scituate Reservoir in RI.

[southshore720]

The tree-hugging NIMBYs of Northwest RI + environmental studies that will not go in favor of a highway project =  .

There should have been a bigger fight in the early 1980s when environmental standards were not as strict.

[Zeffy]

Much more suited for fictional highways, but maybe this could work as a proposed alignment for an I-92 - I think the number may even fit the grid too!

The tree-hugging NIMBYs of Northwest RI + environmental studies that will not go in favor of a highway project =  .

Don't worry - we're in the same boat. Now we are dependent on Pennsylvania building an interchange because of our NIMBYs getting the one freeway that might've made traffic so much better canned.

[spooky]

The tree-hugging NIMBYs of Northwest RI + environmental studies that will not go in favor of a highway project =  .

There should have been a bigger fight in the early 1980s when environmental standards were not as strict.

RI also has far bigger fish to fry today when it comes to infrastructure spending.

[PHLBOS]

There's really no development east of Willimantic, so I'm not sure why there's so much opposition to a direct highway from Hartford to Providence other than Scituate Reservoir in RI.

Bingo!  The Reservoir in RI was exactly one primary reason why I-84 (at least in RI) killed off during the early 80s. Source

However, concerns over environmental impacts to a reservoir supplying much of Rhode Island's water helped kill the project.

[Alps]

The tree-hugging NIMBYs of Northwest RI + environmental studies that will not go in favor of a highway project =  .

There should have been a bigger fight in the early 1980s when environmental standards were not as strict.

RI also has far bigger fish to fry today when it comes to infrastructure spending.

RI has no money. They've redone RI 10, I-195, and the Seekonk River bridge on I-95, and I think they're done. I've heard rumblings about replacing or twinning the RI 114 (I-895) bridge that seems to have gotten nowhere.


(EDIT to fix. Also, Sakonnet was supposed to be toll-supported, but now that just eats up all the more money.)

[PHLBOS]

the Sakonnet River bridge on I-95

The Sakonnet River Bridge is RI 24/138 linking Portsmouth & Tiverton.

I've heard rumblings about replacing or twinning the RI 138 (I-895) bridge that seems to have gotten nowhere

Which bridge are we talking about here?  Both the Newport and Jamestown Bridges (both are part of RI 138) are already 4-laners; and the latter was built during the 1990s that replaced an old, narrow, rickety 2-lane truss bridge that had a steel grate for most of its roadbed.  While cool to look at, riding on it was a death-trap (personal experience) during the old bridge's final two decades.

The only bridge twinning proposal I'm aware of for Aquidneck Island (Portsmouth/Middletown/Newport) is a parallel span of the 2-lane Mount Hope Bridge (RI 114) linking Portsmouth & Bristol.  Such was part of the doomed I-895 project.

[Alps]

a bunch of corrections

i am lame

[yakra]

a bunch of corrections

i am lame

YE KEEPER OF TYPEWRITERS!!@#

[Mergingtraffic]

http://blog.ctnews.com/newsbeat/2015/01/22/malloy-calls-for-widening-entire-i-84/

Malloy wants to widen I-84 especially through Danbury Exits 3-8.  While I'm always in favor or road widening...an extra lane won't fix it here.  Unless the remove the left exit EB at Exit 7, get rid of the lane drops at Exits 3 and 7 both directions, the traffic problems will continue.

WB, the US-7 on-ramp should be two-lanes.

[Pete from Boston]

Widening 84 is kind of the back-door way to widen 95 west of New Haven: it will make 84 an attractive alternative again, relieving 95, but as such it will draw more traffic from the start.

[shadyjay]

Perusing around the ConnDOT traffic cams, I have seen some additional progress in the sign replacement on I-95 between Exits 25 and 44.  In addition to ground-mounted signs such as ATTRACTIONS and other exit supplementary signage, I have observed some new BGSs NB for Exit 27 and SB in the Exit 31-32 area.  Though it's tough to tell from a traffic cam image, the signs are clearly new as they have the aligned exit tab and the Exit 27 sign (a rear view) is much brighter than the others on the gantry.  For those that didn't see the plans for the project, not all signage that was installed when the Bridgeport Corridor was upgraded is getting replaced... only those for Exit 27 (Lafayette Blvd), and some spot replacements elsewhere.  When this project is complete, I-95 will have aligned exit tabs up to New Haven, except Exits 26-30 in Bridgeport.

Also, noticed a press release announcing the closure of the I-84 EB/WB rest areas in Willington.  The closures begin in March and will continue until the end of October.  Looks like mostly restroom work, but other interior work as well.  See:  http://www.ct.gov/dot/cwp/view.asp?A=2135&Q=559806.  Nice to see ConnDOT putting some $$$ into its non-commercial rest areas... a LONG time coming!

[JimmyI395]

Update on I-395 signage. They are starting to put up the supports from exit 86 to 80. Could have been more going south but I didn't get that far.

[Mergingtraffic]

Quite a few new signs going up between Exit 26 and 43 on I-95.  I with they would replace the ones that were put up in 2002 with the Bridgeport widening project and the ones that were put up in 2008 with the Exit 42 widening as well.  Those signs are losing their reflectivity already.  I don't think they lasted well at all.

Signs include new advance signage for x26 and X28 1 Mile  NB.  X27 B & C SB.  Exit 30 has new ones.

[JakeFromNewEngland]

http://wtnh.com/2015/02/12/malloy-pledges-quick-replacement-of-waterburys-mixmaster/

Saw this article today. It looks like the state is trying again to widen I-84 to 3 lanes from Waterbury to NY.

[Mergingtraffic]

http://wtnh.com/2015/02/12/malloy-pledges-quick-replacement-of-waterburys-mixmaster/

Saw this article today. It looks like the state is trying again to widen I-84 to 3 lanes from Waterbury to NY.

There was a series of meetings on this back in 2007-2008, I went to a couple but then fizzled b/c of funding.  It seems like stuff ramps up and then fizzles b/c of funding.  I think the 2007-2008 meetings were to screen alternatives.  Good news though.

[Mergingtraffic]

Gov. Malloy's transportation plan. Some good stuff but how much you wanna bet somebody won't like it and it stalls....as usual.

5 year plan:
http://www.governor.ct.gov/malloy/lib/malloy/2015.02.18_CTDOT_5_YR_Plan.pdf

30 year plan:
http://www.governor.ct.gov/malloy/lib/malloy/2015.02.18_CTDOT_30_YR_Vision.pdf

At the end of the 30 year plan is a list of projects including extending US-7 Expressway up to Route 33.

[Pete from Boston]

Interesting–first I've heard of second crossing in Middletown.   

Replacing the 84/8 structures is going to be a nightmare.

[Duke87]

Under the rail section:

Waterbury Branch Signal System

Yeeeesss!


More in general I love the ambition but of course I don't think everything will come to fruition. In particular, extending the US 7 freeway in Norwalk by so much as an inch will be a non-starter. Wilton wants nothing to do with that.

[Mergingtraffic]

Interesting—first I've heard of second crossing in Middletown.   

Replacing the 84/8 structures is going to be a nightmare.

Alt 8, which is the one they want to build I think, is actually large scale...so I hope they go through with it.

http://www.ct.gov/dot/lib/dot/documents/dpolicy/WINS/WINScoverpage_nov2010.pdf

**
The 30 year plan actually has every major project on it, so hopefully the outcome wil be different, the political talk is different so far.  I've never seen a politician discuss major projects like this before.  Of course, I'm cautiously optimistic.

Also this was on the DOT's homepage.
http://transformct.info/

I plan on going to a town meeting on it.  Although it seems like there have been meetings forever tho....but I'm in!

So what happens now? Malloy outlined the budget does that mean it's a go or do other politicians vote on it?  I ask b/c there are some stingy "old habits die hard" politicians out there that will stop it in it's tracks.

[JakeFromNewEngland]

I'm glad to see Connecticut is starting to see how bad the system is here. I-95 needed that widening a long time ago. Hopefully during my lifetime these projects will be done.

[ARMOURERERIC]

Gov. Malloy's transportation plan. Some good stuff but how much you wanna bet somebody won't like it and it stalls....as usual.

5 year plan:
http://www.governor.ct.gov/malloy/lib/malloy/2015.02.18_CTDOT_5_YR_Plan.pdf

30 year plan:
http://www.governor.ct.gov/malloy/lib/malloy/2015.02.18_CTDOT_30_YR_Vision.pdf

At the end of the 30 year plan is a list of projects including extending US-7 Expressway up to Route 33.

Could I ask you to please post some highlights?  I am having a bunch of difficulty with PDF files as of late.