This year’s celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Interstate Highway System presents highway advocates with a perfect opportunity to educate the public and its elected leaders about the benefits of the interstate system and the need to modernize our nation’s roadways.
TRIP is taking advantage of news media interest in the interstates’ 50th anniversary by releasing a national interstate report and a series of 15 to 20 customized state interstate “future needs” reports. The reports highlight the vital role that the Interstate Highway System played in America’s economic success in the 20th century and point out the need to make further improvements to the nation’s highways to meet the transportation needs of the 21st century.
TRIP released the first of its state interstate reports in Connecticut to a receptive news media. The report, “Saving Lives, Time and Money: A report on the condition, impact, use and future needs of Connecticut’s Interstate Highway System,” examines the history and condition of Connecticut’s interstates, evaluates their safety, economic and time-saving benefits and examines future trends in interstate travel and the ability of the state to fund needed repairs and improvements to the system.
The report finds that Connecticut’s interstates account for only 4% of lane-miles in the state, but they carry 32% of all vehicle travel. And while vehicle-miles of travel on the state’s interstates increased by 23% from 1990 to 2004, actual lane-miles on the system only grew by 3% during that same period.
The TRIP report also points out that, according to the Connecticut Department of Transportation, the state faces a $1.6 billion funding shortfall over the next 10 years for needed interstate projects. This shortfall poses a significant challenge in rebuilding the state’s aging interstate highways and providing additional lane capacity to meet growing travel demands. Traffic congestion and pavement conditions also are likely to worsen unless the state can fund needed projects.
When it comes to safety, TRIP estimates that the additional safety features of the Interstate Highway System have saved approximately 3,000 lives in Connecticut since 1956. And, in addition to saving lives, the system saves the average state resident approximately 90 hours each year by offering faster and more direct routes to locations within and surrounding the state.
TRIP has designed its state interstate reports to focus public attention on our nation’s future mobility needs and challenges as the country looks back at the history of the interstate system.
Joining TRIP at the news conference to release the Connecticut report were seven state representatives, including the speaker of the Assembly and the chair of the Joint Transportation Committee, both of whom used the occasion to promote a 10-year transportation package that was moving through Connecticut’s State Assembly.
The news coverage helped nudge a bipartisan agreement between Gov. M. Jodi Rell, a Republican, and Democratic legislative leaders to deliver a 10-year, $2.3 billion transportation package.
Fifty years after construction, Connecticut, and all of the U.S., continue to reap tremendous benefits from the nation’s most critical transportation network. As Americans look back on the many benefits that the Interstate Highway System has provided us, we also must look ahead to meeting the challenge of providing a 21st century Interstate Highway System that will continue to enhance our quality of life today and in the future.
