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Wednesday, February 18, 2004
Contact: Brian Turmail,
Tel.: (202) 841-9951
DOT 16-04
U.S. Transportation Secretary Mineta Tours Pittsburgh’s Route 28, Calls on
Congress to Pass Responsible SAFETEA Highway Legislation To Help Fund
Improvements to Downtown Gateway
PITTSBURGH, PA—U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta called on Congress
today to show fiscal responsibility and pass a six-year surface transportation
bill that provides record spending without raising taxes, increasing the deficit
or taking money from other programs.
Secretary Mineta made his remarks after touring a congested stretch of Route 28
near Pittsburgh’s North Side neighborhood. During the tour, PennDOT District
Executive Ray Hack pointed out how the traffic bottleneck affects traffic and
why it is important to complete a decades-old project to convert the stretch of
Route 28 into a limited-access freeway.
The Bush Administration’s $256 billion surface transportation reauthorization
proposal, called the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient Transportation
Equity Act of 2003 (SAFETEA), would be the largest highway, transit and safety
investment in U.S. history. The U.S. Senate last week passed a transportation
bill that would divert tax dollars from other programs and risk increasing the
deficit.
“The Route 28 project will help parents get home to their families faster and
make it easier for customers to shop in this area,” said Secretary Mineta.
“Nationwide the President’s transportation plan means solid investment in the
economy through better roads and transit systems, good construction jobs, and
most importantly, more money in taxpayers’ pocketbooks.”
SAFETEA would provide Pennsylvania with more than $1.5 billion every year for
the next six years for infrastructure maintenance and improvements for highway
and transit facilities, including the planned improvements to Route 28. This
represents a more than $66 million increase a year over previous funding levels.
“We need bold action from the Congress to resist the temptation to spend more
than we can afford,” said Secretary Mineta. “Congress needs to approve the
President’s proposal in order to keep transportation plans and the economy
moving.”
Pennsylvania officials are planning to convert a long stretch of Route 28 into a
limited-access freeway that would ease congestion in northeastern Pittsburgh.
The Route 28 project is also being designed to support economic development
programs in the area. Up to 90 percent of the funding for the $180 million
project will come from the federal government.
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