Free Republic

Syracuse, N.Y. --There's not a lot tunnel building going on in the United States. Four highway tunnels have been completed over the last 10 years in the U.S. Four more tunnel projects are under construction or in design. And one long discussed project that would have tunneled underneath a national forest in California was dropped. Could be a tunnel in Syracuse's future for Interstate 81? After a tunnel was initially rejected, a tunnel or depressed highway is back on the table as an option to replace Interstate 81's 1.4 mile section of raised highway in Syracuse. The DOT at first...

It’s been at least two weeks since a massive fire caused a section of I-85 to collapse, throwing metro Atlanta traffic into gridlock and leaving many wondering who exactly was to blame. » The latest: Man charged with I-85 bridge fire pleads not guilty, to be released on bond Here’s what we know so far: Who’s at fault? Basil Eleby, 39, was charged with starting the fire. On Tuesday, April 18, Eleby pleaded not guilty to arson and criminal trespass charges and is expected to be released on a $10,000 signature bond. According to AJC’s Rhonda Cook, Fulton County Superior...

California's $54 billion plan to fix roads and fund highway improvements cleared a major hurdle late Thursday, passing in the state legislature and setting the stage for what could become a massive spending spree. Positive comments last week from analysts about the state transportation plan sent shares of several construction-related companies sharply higher. Some of them continued to trend higher this week and with passage in both houses of the legislature it's possible they could rally Friday. Analysts have suggested beneficiaries of the state spending could include Summit Materials, a construction materials producer, and AECOM, an engineering firm. Summit's stock...

HARTFORD – Toll talk is back at the State Capitol. Some lawmakers say it will drive billions into the state over the next two decades and others want to put the brakes on the idea.At a hearing, Monday, the proposal to bring electronic tolls to Connecticut highways was discussed, with public comment both for and against it.State accountants said the way Connecticut funds transportation will no longer be sustainable in the next four years and a new revenue source is needed.“This doesn't make any sense at all," State Sen. Toni Boucher said. "This is just another name for another tax...

Wisconsin’s highways are seriously underfunded. According to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s Transportation Fund Solvency report, spending only the $28 billion projected to be available over the next decade will lead to double the number of highway miles in “poor” condition — and will preclude even planning any highway expansions for nearly 40 years. Borrowing enough to spend $31 billion would slightly reduce the amount of “poor” highway miles but still would preclude planning any highway expansions until 2040. But a second WisDOT report offers a way out. Extensive research done last year for the DOT by the consulting firm...

Texas is spending record amounts on transportation, but lawmakers worried it is not enough are considering extending a controversial program that’s helped spread tollways through some of the state’s largest areas. A bill approved this week by a House committee would give the Texas Department of Transportation a chance to add six additional projects, including the widening of Interstate 45 north of I-10 and a long-planned Hempstead Tollway, meant to relieve traffic on U.S. 290 with the potential for a commuter rail corridor. The bill, by state Rep. Larry Phillips, R-Sherman, would also allow TxDOT or regional officials the chance...

The construction of a border wall along the U.S.-Mexico Border is pushing ahead, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary John Kelly said. In an interview with Fox News’ Martha MacCallum, Kelly, with Attorney General Jeff Sessions, reassured Americans that border wall construction will soon be underway. “I think something in the neighborhood of 100 companies from across the nation have shown interest and are starting to put together their prototypes,” Kelly said. “Of course, contracting is a pretty complicated business in the federal government, unfortunately. Too complicated. But I think by late spring, early summer we’ll have some prototypes.”

The future of U.S. homebuilding depends on more people like Cyndicy Yarborough, a 26-year-old former Wal-Mart clerk with no background in construction. At Blueprint Robotics in Baltimore, she works in a factory that builds houses like cars, on an assembly line, using robots that fire thousands of nails into studs each day and never miss. Yarborough operates a machine that lifts floors and walls and packs them onto a flatbed truck, the final step before delivery to a development site where they’ll be pieced together. “I like being a part of something new, on the cutting edge,” said Yarborough, a...

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - A proposed bill to ban express lanes in Florida died Thursday in the House Transportation and Infrastructure subcommittee. Despite causing an increase in crashes and confusion, express lanes, according to the Florida Department of Transportation, help move people faster, and that if they were eliminated the state would lose $1.5 billion over 10 years. All of that money is used to improve and fix roads. Sen. Frank Artiles, R-Miami, filed SB 250 in January. It that would have allowed the express lanes to remain in operation only until tolls are collected to pay off the bonds that...

More than a year behind schedule, the massive project to add toll lanes to 11 miles of MoPac Expressway is now costing the government agency overseeing construction some of its savings. The Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority is dipping into its cash reserves to repay some of the $230 million it owes to the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, the Austin American-Statesman reports. The agency said once the rest of the toll lanes open — which is now projected to happen June 15, per the Statesman — the revenue collected will solve such cash flow problems. The tolls are expected...

WASHINGTON (AP) - Democrats had hoped the one big policy area they could find common ground with President Donald Trump on was infrastructure, but they don't like what they're hearing from administration officials about the transportation portion of the plan that's still in the works. Trump has promised to generate $1 trillion in infrastructure spending over 10 years. With two of his other top campaign pledges in trouble - an effort to repeal and replace the Obama administration health care law has failed so far, and without savings to the government from health care changes there may not be enough...

In a matter of days, time will run out on a plan that could cut down on commuting times, pave the way for even less traffic congestion, and potentially give taxpayers a break. For reasons that remain unclear, the General Assembly has ignored the Illinois Department of Transportation's I-55 managed lanes project, and the cost of doing nothing has the potential to harm the state's ability to do business for years to come. The I-55 managed lanes proposal would add an express toll lane between the Veterans Memorial Tollway in the southwest suburbs and the Dan Ryan Expressway in Chicago....

GRAYLING, Mich. -- Arauco North America has broken ground on its $400 million particleboard plant. The new operation will employ more than 250 and will make both raw particleboard and TFM. The Grayling particleboard plant is reported to be one of the largest mills of its kind. When completed the new location will feature North America's largest continuous particleboard press. Kelly Shotbolt, president of Arauco North America, said the upper Midwest is the largest consuming region of particleboard in all of North America. Shotbolt and Rick Snyder, governor of Michigan, spoke at the groundbreaking event. The plant is expected to...

For some, the possibility of tolls on Interstate 70 across Indiana is going over like a flat tire. But Republican lawmakers who control the legislature say they could help fund new driving lanes and only those who use the road would pay for them. “I think it’s totally unfair,” said Judy Anderson, president of the Vigo County Board of Commissioners. “I don’t think we would be supportive at all.” Pending legislation would let the governor place toll lanes on interstates and bridges, subject to federal approval. Many Vigo County residents commute to jobs in Indianapolis and a large number of...

Since tolls descended on Route 390, there has been an exodus of cars and trucks from the former Elgin-O'Hare Expressway.Vehicles decreased between 38 percent and 28 percent on sections of Route 390 between Lake Street and I-290, according to Illinois tollway data comparing usage before construction and in February. Where are those thousands of commuters and truckers going? Boycotting 20-cent a mile tolls on Route 390 and spilling off onto local roads in communities like Roselle, some residents say.Commuter Brian McGehee was running late Friday at 7 a.m., "so, I bit the bullet," he said referring to Route 390. "The...

Illinois tollway directors agreed Thursday to spend up to $4 million to assist minority-, women- and veteran-owned construction companies that are seeking work with the agency. The funds will be distributed among seven entities including the Mexican-American Chamber of Commerce, Illinois State Black Chamber of Commerce and Chicago Minority Supplier Development Council. Training ranges from basics such as explaining the technicalities of bidding for a contract and obtaining financing to advanced classes in estimating the cost of a job or managing a business. The program will be evaluated based on the number of businesses served and successful bids, among other...

Rebuilding and widening the mammoth Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294) is complicated enough given it's the system's most-used road, with up to 185,000 cars and trucks clogging it daily.Throw in a tangle of towns where officials either hate or love the project, plus churn on the tollway board, and the planned redo gets even gnarlier. The Illinois tollway intends to fix the road between 95th Street in the South Suburbs and Balmoral Avenue in Rosemont. There's no final design or budget yet, but a decision is expected soon.Improvements likely could include extra lanes and new interchanges -- exciting news for anyone...

The Hispanic American Construction Industry Association (HACIA) has presented the Illinois Tollway with a Project of the Year Award for the $2.5 billion Jane Addams Memorial Tollway (Interstate 90) Rebuilding and Widening Project. The award was presented during the association’s 38th annual awards banquet in Chicago. This is the second HACIA Project of the Year Award the Tollway has received, the first being presented in 2015 for the initial phase of this same project. “This project demonstrates how the Illinois Tollway has helped contribute to the growth and development of Hispanic-owned firms in the Chicago area and across Northern Illinois,”...

Building a house completely by hand can be both time-consuming and expensive. A number of home-builders have chosen to automate part of the construction process (i.e. by printing the home's parts) instead. A new Ukrainian homebuilding startup called Passivdom uses a 3D-printing robot that can print parts for tiny houses. The machine can print the walls, roof, and floor of Passivdom's 380-square-foot model in about eight hours. The windows, doors, plumbing, and electrical systems are then added by a human worker. When complete, the homes are completely autonomous and mobile, meaning they don't need to connect to external electrical and...

As I retire, I want to devote my last column to travelers who wrote in to discuss their tips and travails. Some wanted to get something fixed. Some just wanted to vent. All were welcome. Dear Dr. Gridlock: I’m not a commuter, but I have a real gridlock problem. When people in a left lane don’t pull up to the vehicle in front of them, they block the ability of people trying to turn left from accessing the left-turn lane. I can’t even count how many times I’ve missed the left green arrow because of this. It seems that if...