STUDY ON PROPOSED I-66 ROUTE AT MIDPOINT

A feasibility study begun last fall on a proposed new east-west interstate highway known as I-66 is at the halfway point.

Recently the Regional Commerce and Growth Association based in Cape Girardeau, which originated the idea in 1989, hosted a meeting in Washington, D.C., to provide an update on the study.

Walt Wildman, executive director of the RCGA, said representatives from 10 states along the proposed corridor attended the briefing conducted by Tom Weeks of the Federal Highway Administration.

Weeks is serving as chairman of the steering committee that is overseeing the study.

Wildman said the study has eight tasks, and four of them have been completed. The four completed tasks are to study concepts and procedures; reviewing existing conditions and needs for additional transportation; reviewing alternatives and needs for the future; and evaluating concepts to determine which transportation technologies and modes appear promising.

Future phases of the study will include: corridor applications; assessing feasibility; drawing conclusions on what technologies, modes and corridors should be pursued; and then releasing the final products.

A key focus of the update was to outline the four coast-to-coast alternatives that have been selected for study.

Those alternatives include: a conventional interstate highway, which eventually could have new automated technology added; a conventional interstate highway and conventional railroad, which is a multi-modal concept based on the premise that new rail lines will eventually be developed with a capable speed of up to 125 mph; a super highway and truckway, which would eventually provide for 125 mph highway speeds, high tech vehicle control systems, and separating trucks and passenger cars; and a super highway, plus very high speed fixed guideway design, which would allow for the development of fixed guideway operations at speeds between 200 and 300 mph, using magnetic levitation technology.

As part of the study, consideration is being given to acquiring right of way that could be used jointly, not only for highways but also for railroads, pipelines, and electrical and telecommunication transmission lines.

The study also is reviewing the fact that while there are only two continuous east-west interstate highways - I-40 and I-70 - there are no major east-west transamerica rail freight lines.

The study also points out that the automobile is the mode of choice for trips up to about 900 miles for most Americans, with air travel chosen for longer trips.

U.S. Rep. Bill Emerson initiated the study in Congress in the summer of 1989. In last year's federal highway bill, the project was earmarked as a high priority project for the nation.

Now that the feasibility study has been funded, the next round of funding Congress will be asked to provide is for the coast-to-coast corridor.

The feasibility study team has participants from both the private and public sectors. The Missouri Highway and Transportation Department is the administrative agency for the overall study.

The public sector has representatives from 11 states, the U.S. Department of Transportation, and the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center. The eleven states represented are: Missouri, Colorado, Arkansas, Arizona, Illinois, Kentucky, Kansas, New Mexico, Utah, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Eight other states that could eventually be affected by the new corridor are: California, Indiana, Maryland, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas. These states are being kept advised of the study.

Wildman said the study should be finished by September.

Originally, the project was known as I-66 Project Inc. But that name is now used only for the ongoing lobbying efforts. The steering committee is now referring to the overall project effort as the Transamerica Transportation Corridor.

Wildman said anyone interested in a copy of the newsletter outlining the progress of the study so far should contact the RCGA office at 334-4142, or stop by the office at 1021 Kingsway in Cape Girardeau.