Roadway Infrastructure in Connecticut During the COVID-19 Crisis

ROADWAY INFRASTRUCTURE IN CONNECTICUT DURING THE ONGOING COVID-19 CRISIS

By Austin Ferentzy

Connecticut’s standing as 47th in roadway infrastructure continues as we enter the first quarter of 2020. The factors contributing to this continuous grade still include roadway conditions, minor repair maintenance, and capacity. Last semester, Connecticut was graded as trending upwards toward growth and improvement in this category, and, despite the ongoing crisis regarding COVID-19, the forecasted growth is continuing as predicted. With public transport becoming increasingly nonviable for many immunocompromised, driving is the only way to ensure social distancing when it is necessary to leave self-quarantine.

As with most other states, Gov. Lamont issued the “Stay Safe, Stay Home” executive order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Connecticut. Most nonessential businesses have closed and will remain closed indefinitely. This has had adverse effects on the economy and the lives of citizens all over the country, but it will most likely positively affect Connecticut’s infrastructure plan. The social environment the pandemic has produced has seen an almost 40-50 percent decrease in driver volume on most state roads during the week, and up to 70 percent drop on the weekends. Yankee Doodle Bridge over the Norwalk River has long been considered one of the worst bottleneck sites of the entire highway system of Connecticut, as well as being ranked as the bridge in most need of repair in the entire state. Despite this, it has seen record-breaking lows in terms of cars travelled, dropping from 162,527 on Friday March 6, to less than half that number five weeks later on April 10, at 77,130.

As part of Gov. Ned Lamont’s continued efforts to tackle Connecticut’s unique infrastructure problems, the state office has made clear it still intends to operate during the ongoing pandemic. The State Bond Commission met on April 16, and, on top of allocating more than $700 million in transportation financing, they also released the full $60 million Town Road Aid grant, which has been delayed by Gov. Lamont since last July. While the battle for tolling our state highways is still ongoing, Gov. Lamont relented in February against withholding state aid in exchange for support for electronic tolling. This is a critical step in Connecticut’s towns and cities finally having funding to make basic repairs and upkeep that many desperately need. However, this came with a foreshadowed warning from the governor to those resisting the idea of even simple tolls: “We don’t have an endless supply of money; we had to make some choices, and these were the choices we made.”

Figure 17: Traffic Monitoring Numbers for Norwalk I-95 [March 1, 2020 — April 20, 2020]

The state’s Special Transportation Fund is projected to run until 2024, with minor surpluses, but it would only allow for a “status quo” like upkeep of current plans, if that. More than 50 percent of Connecticut’s roadways are 55 years old or older, with 80 percent of the state’s roadways consistently graded as in poor condition. In order for Connecticut to actively have funds to progressivly improve and repair, the DOT has stated the state would need to boost its annual capital investment by over 25 percent in the next 10 years and bring in more than $30 billion over the next 30 years in order to reach improvement goals.

While this pandemic has not yet impacted the current plan for repair, it is important for state legislators to remain united and focus on continuing to make resources available to communities. Towns can still apply for Local Capital Improvement Program (LoCIP) funds on a project-to-project basis, and the State Bond Commission will be continuing to meet and allocate funds for various state projects. On top of this, the reduction in volume of active drivers will make it more convenient for repair crews to work uninterrupted in areas usually plagued with traffic. Some of the projects scheduled for the upcoming months included the widening of I-84 between exits 3 and 8 in southwestern Connecticut. Regardless of what the coming months bring in terms of further social and economic changes, the state should continue to follow the projected timeline set up by the “Let’s Go CT” plan in 2016. In doing so, Connecticut will continue to positively improve the lives of its citizens, with the goal of reestablishing its identity as a thriving, organized state, something which has eluded it over the past two decades.

https://www.infrastructurereportcard.org/state-item/connecticut/ — ASCE CT Report Card 2018 https://openbudget.ct.gov/ — CT Spending & Budget Breakdown https://portal.ct.gov/ — Transportation Infrastructure Capital Plan Report 2019-2023

https://ctmirror.org/2020/04/01/ct-maintains-funds-for-transportation-port-development-amidst-pandemic/ https://ctmirror.org/2020/04/06/state-sees-shocking-drop-in-traffic/ https://portal.ct.gov/DOT/PP_SysInfo/Traffic-Monitoring

Austin Ferentzy ’20

Major: Behavioral Economics

Hometown: Easton, Connecticut