New Transportation Infrastructure Improvement Plan Proposed

New Transportation Infrastructure Improvement Plan Proposed
March 13, 2008

New York State’s Department of Transportation is offering $175 Billion improvement plan for updating and repairing its transportation infrastructure. With the deterioration of New York’s roads, bridges, railroads, and ports threatening many businesses that rely on them, this much-needed transportation infrastructure improvement plan is deemed essential for the state’s long-term economic prosperity and well-being.

Tioga Hardwoods Inc., operating in Owego and Berkshire, uses trucks to transport wood from and to sawmills, averaging 250 truck loads per month. After drying and separating wood, the company eventually sells it. President and co-owner of Tioga Hardwoods Inc., Kevin Gillette, said that reliable transportation is crucial for his business to survive. Transportation is also a hot topic among companies that are planning a move to the region.

Addressing this issue, Kendra L. Adams, Deputy Director of the New York State Motor Truck Association, confirmed that updating and repairing the state’s transportation is of high priority. Trucking is a big business in New York - more than 37,134 trucking companies are operating from New York - and transported goods need to arrive on a timely manner or else the jobs of 516,500 employees of the trucking industry will be jeopardized. With roads becoming more and more congested, timely deliveries have been unduly hindered and this has cost the trucking industry a lot of money. As nearly 2,950 bridges will become deficient in the 10 years to come, highway funding is now of key importance to the industry.

Kevin Gillette stated that faster rail service can be a feasible option for his company if only train speed improves. Bruce Lieberman, president of Railroads of New York and chairman of New York and Atlantic Railway, said that about 1.2 billion tons of goods, including agricultural grains, wood, paper, steel, stone, and chemicals, were transported via New York railroad services in 2006. Many tracks within the state are old and congested, and with the number of goods in need of transporting expected to increase by 70% in the next 15 to 20 years, the rail option has emerged as a necessity. Lieberman said that a five-year plan has been laid out by his organization demanding railroad yard expansions to allow more goods to be hauled in addition to repairing and upgrading already existing tracks.

Air travel is also a sought-after aspect of transportation and option for hauling goods. According to Douglas Barton, Tioga County Department of Economic Development and Planning Director, although the Greater Binghamton Airport has undergone some improvements, it hasn’t been the focus of attention as of late. Nowadays, having access to air travel is as important to business as was having access to highways in the past.

Repairing and upgrading New York’s transportation items need both time and funding. The Department of Transportation is estimating that the transportation infrastructure improvement plan will take 20 years and $175.2 billion dollars to be completed. The Department of Transportation commissioner Astrid C. Glynn said that the federal government will need to provide a major amount of the funding. Once Congress renews its Federal Surface Transportation Act in 2009, the State of New York needs to seek the authorized funds in the legislation to provide the adequate funding needed for this plan. The Department of Transportation also scheduled public conferences throughout the state in order to enlighten the public about freight transportation.

The Department of Transportation’s plan needs to be carried out as soon as possible. Glynn said with an annual inflation rate of 9.2% on construction costs, a prolonged duration between planning and implementation can cause severe loss of value for the dollar and catastrophic consequences on the plan’s finances. Glynn added that any federal funding New York’s Department of Transportation receives will have to be distributed geographically. Subsequently, with a range of proposed projects all over the state, projects must be prioritized in terms of importance.