Road improvement money from stimulus bill?

[lamsalfl]

What did your state get?

LA got $430 million for road improvements, and $70 million for transit.

[Alex]

A bypass of Quincy is included in the stimulus package for Florida:

http://tallahassee.com/assets/pdf/CD128238210.PDF

[Alex]

The story mentions a couple of projects in South Alabama. I think 52,000 jobs is a lofty prediction though.

http://www.al.com/news/press-register/metro.ssf?/base/news/1234952172217250.xml&coll=3
==

Stimulus money won't cover all proposed Alabama highway projects
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
By SEAN REILLY
Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON – Exactly how much the Alabama Department of Transportation will receive from a newly approved economic stimulus package isn't yet known, but it almost certainly won't be enough to cover the backlog of eligible projects, relatively few of which are in coastal Alabama, according to agency figures.

In a list assembled last month, the department tallied more than 250 "ready to go" road and bridge projects that only needed money to get started, with an overall price tag of more than $1.1 billion.

But the state is likely to receive less than half that amount from the stimulus bill signed into law Tuesday by President Barack Obama. That means many of those projects won't make the final cut, spokesman Tony Harris acknowledged Tuesday.

"The daunting part of this begins now for us, and that's to prioritize and make some tough decisions about what advances and what waits," Harris said. Safety concerns and economic growth potential – not politics – will govern those decisions, he said.

In the department's 9th division – which covers Mobile, Baldwin, Escambia and Conecuh counties – the ready-to-go list includes some two dozen projects, including an $18.4 million lane addition to Alabama 181 in Baldwin County from County Road 54 to U.S. 90.

Everything on the list is supposed to be ready to let within six months.

Conspicuously absent is any proposed investment in the four-laning of U.S. 98, which has been snarled in a lawsuit filed by the Mobile Area Water and Sewer Service alleging that state officials haven't done enough to safeguard Big Creek Lake from muddy runoff.

While Mobile County Commissioner Stephen Nodine this week voiced hope that department officials could change their minds if the lawsuit is settled, Harris was doubtful. "The project needs to be ready to go now," he said.

The $787 billion stimulus package will save or create an estimated 52,000 jobs in Alabama over two years, according to the White House, which has placed high priority on spending the money relatively quickly.

The state's shareis not yet known, but estimates released last week by the National Conference of State Legislatures put the total at more than $3 billion spread across some two-dozen programs.

According to those numbers, the transportation department will receive $541 million, on top of what it's already in line to collect in regular federal funding. As large as that sum is, however, it's only a fraction of the cost of the long-term wish lists of state legislators and other public officials.

At the federal level, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will receive $4.6 billion from the stimulus package; the estimated backlog of congressionally authorized water projects exceeds $50 billion.

"There are a lot of opportunities out there," spokesman Gene Pawlik said Tuesday. "A lot of challenges as well."

[Alex]

Combing through the NC "Shovel Ready" list, I see money allocated toward Interstate 295 at Fayetteville, the U.S. 421 Sanford bypass, extending Interstate 140 west, the U.S. 70 Goldsboro bypass, North Carolina 540, Interstate 840, Rockingham Bypass of I-73/74, Interstate 485, and U.S. 17 New Bern bypass.

Money also is slated to go for interchange reconstruction between Interstates 40 and 77, upgrading U.S. 220/Future I-73/74 to Interstate standards south of Steeds and north of Emery

The full list can be found at http://www.ncdot.gov/_templates/download/external.html?pdf=http%3A//www.ncdot.org/download/about/finance/fedstimulus/HIGHWAY_EconomicStimulus.pdf

[lamsalfl]

And here are LA's projects:

http://www.dotd.state.la.us/pressreleases/release.aspx?key=986

**INCLUDES MONEY FOR I-49**

[Anthony_JK]

Ahhhh....not so fast on Louisiana...there's been a revolt from some State Legislators over where the stim money would be spent, and LaDOTD has been forced to go back to the drawing board. 

Seems a key legislator from North Louisiana didn't like the fact that most of the money went to the Baton Rouge/Hammond area for improvements to I-10 and I-12, and wanted more money for I-49 North north of Shreveport, so he got his fellow state senators on the board to block approval of the DOTD's funding plan.

The Lafayette Daily Advertiser has the story here:

State Senators Block Stimulus
http://theadvertiser.com/article/20090221/NEWS01/902210304/1002/rss

Gee...I wonder why they couldn't do the same for I-49 South??


Anthony

[barcncpt44]

One of Aldot top projects in the state is anniston's eastern parkway completion into fort mccellan and jackasonville

[PAHighways]

District 11 is looking towards the stimulus to improve the Parkway West so they can get the I-376 designation extended.  One of the projects expected to get some money is the rebuilding of the US 22-US 30/PA 60 cloverleaf.

Most of the money that the Commonwealth will get will go to replacing the 22,000-some structurally deficient bridges.

[mightyace]

From the TN DOT website:

TDOT is currently reviewing federal selection criteria in order to finalize a list of qualified projects that will be let to contract in May and June 2009.

http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/readytogo/default.htm

[yanksfan6129]

I've thought about it a little bit, the amount of money is ridiculous. NJ is getting about $600 million I think it said. What can we do with that amount of money? Today, in road-building, thats practically nothing.

[lamsalfl]

Ahhhh....not so fast on Louisiana...there's been a revolt from some State Legislators over where the stim money would be spent, and LaDOTD has been forced to go back to the drawing board. 

Seems a key legislator from North Louisiana didn't like the fact that most of the money went to the Baton Rouge/Hammond area for improvements to I-10 and I-12, and wanted more money for I-49 North north of Shreveport, so he got his fellow state senators on the board to block approval of the DOTD's funding plan.

The Lafayette Daily Advertiser has the story here:

State Senators Block Stimulus
http://theadvertiser.com/article/20090221/NEWS01/902210304/1002/rss

Gee...I wonder why they couldn't do the same for I-49 South??


Anthony

Frankly, I don't care about I-49 South and I live in New Orleans.  It's such a pie in the sky proposal.  The record of decision has I-49 being elevated from the Westbank Expressway to Raceland.  That's ludicrous.  Just upgrade parts of US 90.  We will never see the money for I-49 South either.  Actually, I would like to see the continued grade-separation of US 90 south of Lafayette to reduce car accidents.  I'm on the I-49 north bandwagon though.

[PAHighways]

Pennsylvania's 2009 ARRA Planned Highway and Bridge Projects for Letting

[akotchi]

Some of the stimulus projects in New Jersey involve things like small bridge replacements, pavement reconstruction, and traffic signal systems.  I am working on two such projects now.  A few of our larger projects that were to be in the package got pulled out, presumably because of the level of funding.

[Alex]

http://www.nogalesinternational.com/articles/2009/03/17/news/doc49bfc57826497437558648.txt

Some news from Arizona:
==
New signs on Interstate 19 courtesy of recovery funds

By Denise Holley
Published Tuesday, March 17, 2009 10:11 AM MDT

When you leave Tucson and head south to the border on Interstate 19, you might think you had entered a foreign country. Speed limits are posted in miles per hour, but the signs indicating distance appear in kilometers.

The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) voted March 13 to fund a project to replace the kilometer signs with the distances listed in miles. It was on the list of 41 ready-to-go highway projects across Arizona that the State Transportation Board approved for funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (the federal economic-stimulus plan).

1980s

The kilometer signs were posted in the 1980s at a time when the United States considered embracing the metric system used by other countries, said Linda Ritter, ADOT spokeswoman. One kilometer equals .62 miles.

"It's confusing to people,"  Ritter said. "The signs were at the end of their useful life."

Replacement will begin at the border and continue north 63 miles until the junction with Interstate 10 in Tucson. Because the exits were determined in kilometers, the exit numbers will change, Ritter said.

Big bucks

ADOT also approved $2.75 million pavement preservation project on State Route 83 in both Pima and Santa Cruz counties, from milepost 31 to 43, Ritter said.

ADOT will receive approximately $350 million in economic recovery funds. The funding formula will allocate an estimated $130 million for five projects in Maricopa County, $46 million for eight projects in Pima County and $175 million for 28 projects in Arizona's other counties. ADOT estimates that the projects could create more than 13,000 jobs statewide.

ADOT will start advertising projects for bids this week, Ritter said. Once the State Transportation Board approves the construction contracts, work could begin on some of the projects by this summer.

ARRA

All transportation projects funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act must be complete within three years.

[SSOWorld]

some of the funds are being put in to add a direct route from the US 151 business to the university in my hometown.

[ComputerGuy]

Washington gets $492,242,337. Hmmm...I-605 anyone?

[Alex]

You have any details on what Washington is going to use the money for?

[ComputerGuy]

Not a whole lot...I think there's a section on their website..

www.wsdot.wa.gov

[74/171FAN]

Virginia's list of stimulus projects(first must be approved by the CTB) http://www.stimulus.virginia.gov/docs/transpo_projects.pdf  Projects include replacing I-95 bridges in Downtown Richmond and an I-295 interchange at SR 618/Meadowville Rd(don't personally see a real point for it although those that work in that section of Chesterfield County do thanks to offices).

[Anthony_JK]

Quoting lamsalfl:

Frankly, I don't care about I-49 South and I live in New Orleans.  It's such a pie in the sky proposal.  The record of decision has I-49 being elevated from the Westbank Expressway to Raceland.  That's ludicrous.  Just upgrade parts of US 90.  We will never see the money for I-49 South either.  Actually, I would like to see the continued grade-separation of US 90 south of Lafayette to reduce car accidents.  I'm on the I-49 north bandwagon though.

Maybe pie in the sky for you....but try telling someone who lives in New Iberia who had to fight through the evacuations of Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Gustav, and Ike on existing US 90 through Lafayette, or anyone employed in the petrochemical industry, and they will beg to seriously differ with you.

Besides, most of the US 90 corridor is already up to or being upgraded to freeway standard..why finish it halfway without completing the sections through Lafayette and Patterson/Bayou Vista??

As for the expense of the Raceland/Westbank segment: well, it was LaDOTD's and the Fed's decision to elevate the highway all the way through due to fears of flooding during hurricane evacuations...for the most part, it makes perfect sense, even with the cost.

If you are that opposed to it going all the way to NOLA, then why not just truncate it to use I-310 to end just west of NOLA and simply complete the Westbank Expressway upgrade  to US 90 as I-910??

And I disagree on the money, too: given the mass support for the project from politicos and the public, it's only a matter of time and resources before it is ultimately built.  Maybe not as quickly as most of us hope, and probably as a toll road in some parts....but it will get built.


Anthony

[lamsalfl]

That post was like a year ago.  I never said I was against the route.  I just said it's pie in the sky because it's going to cost like $3 billion, and that money won't be available for decades.  I'm just being a realist here.  And I believe I said in that old post that "Actually, I would like to see the continued grade-separation of US 90 south of Lafayette to reduce car accidents."

[shoptb1]

"Actually, I would like to see the continued grade-separation of US 90 south of Lafayette to reduce car accidents."

I agree with your statement as well.  Upgrade US-90 as it makes sense.  $3 Billion is a near-impossible bill to fill, even when looking at states with densely-populated areas such as New Jersey or California.  For Louisiana to expect to see this sort of funding for the rural areas along US-90 is just not realistic. Politically, it's going to be a very hard sell to send federal money of this magnitude to this area....especially after the high financial pricetag of rebuilding the Gulf Coast/New Orleans area following the Katrina disaster. 

[lamsalfl]

"Actually, I would like to see the continued grade-separation of US 90 south of Lafayette to reduce car accidents."

I agree with your statement as well.  Upgrade US-90 as it makes sense.  $3 Billion is a near-impossible bill to fill, even when looking at states with densely-populated areas such as New Jersey or California.  For Louisiana to expect to see this sort of funding for the rural areas along US-90 is just not realistic. Politically, it's going to be a very hard sell to send federal money of this magnitude to this area....especially after the high financial pricetag of rebuilding the Gulf Coast/New Orleans area following the Katrina disaster.  

I'm so sick of people from bum-f*** inland America acting like know-it-alls thinking the feds did us a favor by rebuilding the Gulf Coast, as if it doesn't benefit anyone but the Coast.  NEWSFLASH:  With a river like the Mississippi, you have to have a major port at the bottom of it as far as possible!  Also, away from the river, 25% of all AMERICA'S energy comes in through Port Fourchon, LA.  And no that doesn't mean solely Middle Eastern imports.  That includes energy scooped up offshore Louisiana in the Gulf.  Americans are so arrogant sometimes, and so easy to point fingers.  Go talk to the people of Amsterdam why they live in an even more precarious geographic situation than South Louisiana, and have been so since the 1200s.  I swear, sometimes I feel like maybe the next time a Loma Prieta (or worse) earthquake rattles Los Angeles and brings down their Interstates and federal infrastructure, maybe I'll just be like "that's a shame".  

The Port of South Louisiana is the largest volume shipping port in the Western Hemisphere and 9th largest in the world. It is the largest bulk cargo port in the world.

The Port of New Orleans is a port located in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is the 5th largest port in the United States based on volume of cargo handled, second-largest in the state after the Port of South Louisiana, and 12th largest in the U.S. based on value of cargo. It also has the longest wharf in the world, which is 2.1 miles (3.4 km) long and can accommodate 15 vessels at one time.

The Port of New Orleans handles about 84 million short tons of cargo a year. The Port of South Louisiana, based in the New Orleans suburb of LaPlace, handles 199 million short tons. The two combined form the largest port system in the world by bulk tonnage, and the world's fourth largest by annual volume handled. In this context, the Port of New Orleans refers to itself as being "at the center of the world's busiest port complex."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_of_New_Orleans
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_of_south_louisiana

Dear Netherlands:  Thanks for being a friend and getting us!  Dear France:  Buy us (the Gulf Coast) back!

Sorry to be sensitive at 3:15 am, but it's frustrating to see the "politically, it's going to be a tough sell" mantra, when it's (supposed to be) important nationally, but people (not meaning you, but the nation) think it's just for a few shrimp boats or people taking their pirogues out on da wawta' for pleasure.

Back on topic, yeah US 90 needs some upgrades, but I'm not sure we need 45 miles of elevated highway from the Westbank to Raceland.  Seems to me like some spots could be elevated, and others just upgraded at grade.  It's all a 4-lane road right now anyway.

[shoptb1]

I'm so sick of people from bum-f*** inland America acting like know-it-alls thinking the feds did us a favor by rebuilding the Gulf Coast, as if it doesn't benefit anyone but the Coast.  NEWSFLASH:  With a river like the Mississippi, you have to have a major port at the bottom of it as far as possible!  Also, away from the river, 25% of all AMERICA'S energy comes in through Port Fourchon, LA.  And no that doesn't mean solely Middle Eastern imports.  That includes energy scooped up offshore Louisiana in the Gulf.  Americans are so arrogant sometimes, and so easy to point fingers.  Go talk to the people of Amsterdam why they live in an even more precarious geographic situation than South Louisiana, and have been so since the 1200s.  I swear, sometimes I feel like maybe the next time a Loma Prieta (or worse) earthquake rattles Los Angeles and brings down their Interstates and federal infrastructure, maybe I'll just be like "that's a shame". 

Settle down.  I think you're reading a lot more into my statement than was intended.  No one is arguing the importance of New Orleans or Louisiana in general...and DEFINITELY not arguing the importance of rebuilding following the latest round of hurricanes.  I'm simply saying that spending $3 billion on 45 miles of elevated roadway is not going to provide a huge net benefit to Louisiana (or the rest of North America to your point) over at-grade improvements to US-90 outside of situations where the at-grade sections would be flooded.  And in those cases, what are the chances that the ports are going to be closed due to severe weather conditions as well anyway?  If not, traffic could just use the existing freeways (I-10, I-55) to get cargo out of the ports. 

I think we're saying the same thing, I'm just being a pragmatist.  The reality is that there's only so much money to go around due to current priorities, and everybody's fighting for a portion. Like it or not, we have to deal with politicians (ugghh), and unless our country changes its priority to spend many times more money on international defense-related efforts vs. domestic infrastructure, this is the way it's gonna be.  Outside of this, Louisiana always has the ability to raise money internally for the I-49 project via a bond initiative if it is deemed to be a high enough priority.  But then you're fighting the whole "no more taxes" mantra and we all know how that goes.