MISSOURI WATCH: MISSOURI BUILDS A HIGHWAY

Naturally, when Gov. Mel Carnahan announced in his annual State of the State address that Missouri intended to construct an "Information Superhighway," the first thing the news media did was find out more about this project. For those of you who might not have been on the third floor of the State Capitol on Jan. 22 when the chief executive made this exciting announcement, let me reprint what he said:

"The Information Superhighway is so popular today that many people can't even get on, let alone maneuver through all the traffic. My recommendations this year include widening the on-ramps and adding a new lane so Missouri students can get on the Information Highway and travel more rapidly to the places they need to go."

Well, as you can see, our governor has given plenty of thought to his plans for this new project. He has studied traffic charts, determining that the road is quite congested and not easily accessed. He has provided for widening certain portions of the route, which will come complete with on-ramps. To show you how clearly he has pictured this project, he has even called for a new lane, which may qualify it as a super, superhighway. Clearly, he has provided an exciting, visionary road-building program for the next 12 months.

Wanting to learn more about this new project, I decided to call some departments in Jefferson City to see how far it had progressed. Here's a summary of the information I gathered:

TRANSPORTATION DEPARTMENT: As you can imagine, the engineers at our newly named DOT have given the governor's project a top priority, assigning it the first spot in the agency's highly touted 15-Year Road Plan. When I spoke to the engineer in charge of the Information Superhighway, I was delighted to learn that survey crews had already been dispatched to provide preliminary information. Not only has DOT dedicated several scores of surveyors, but it has assigned its top-notch environmental teams, sending these special squads to every corner of the state to detect harmful consequences on endangered species that lurk in the atmosphere, as well as its community participation squads, which contact local civic leaders in all 114 counties to determine that every resident is 100 percent in support of construction. The engineer-in-charge, who referred me to the department's public relations director in charge of gubernatorial projects for more specific details, was hesitant to put a completion date on the Superhighway, noting a current problem with financing but observing that if DOT had access to revenue from new user taxes, the project could be completed, and I quote him, "Well, this is a wild guess, but I would think we could wrap up all the plans, codicils, financing, easements and other data by, let's say, sometime after the Social Security fund dries up." When I suggested that perhaps the governor had an earlier date in mind, the engineer just laughed. As a matter of fact, he was still laughing when I hung up.

DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES: When questioned about the work his department was undertaking for the Information Superhighway, the agency's public information director said he was unaware of the project. When I filled him in on the details, he said he couldn't speak for the record but he seemed incredulous when I told him the chief executive probably wanted a project that included all of the state's 114 counties. "Oh, that would be impossible," the spokesperson said emphatically. "Why, we couldn't wrap up an environmental clearance for a project that extensive in my lifetime." When I asked him if the agency would consider granting some environmental exemptions for such an important construction program, he just laughed. As a matter of fact, he was still laughing when I hung up.

DEPARTMENT OF ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION: After talking to several assistant commissioners of education, I was connected to an assistant deputy commissioner who told me his agency would look very favorably on the governor's project as long as it had been given "proper authority" from the General Assembly, federal courts in Kansas City and St. Louis, the state board of education, citizens' review committees, the office of attorney general, the state Supreme Court, teachers groups and boards of education in 524 school districts. Discouraging was his reply to my inquiry about a completion date: "Never!"

Well, there you have the First Progress Report on the Governor's Information Superhighway Project. I'd say things are moving right on schedule if your watch and calendar are set on C.P.T. (Central Political Time).

Jack Stapleton of Kennett is editor fo Missouri News and Editorial Service.