Froggie's Top 5 Road Projects, by state

A misc.transport.road thread from October, 2006 asked readers, if they had "complete control of your state's highway budget and resources", what their top five road projects would be.  Below, I have included my listings for those states under my cognizance (or at least have some experience with):

Minnesota

• Implement the "Ultimate Vision" from the Downtown Minneapolis Freeway Study (includes I-35W/I-94/MN 55 "Spaghetti Junction" reconstruction and widening of the I-94 Lowry Hill Tunnel).
• Reconstruct and expand I-494 between MN 100 and MN 77, to include full reconstruction of the I-494/MN 100 and I-494/I-35W interchanges.
• Expand I-694 between I-35W and I-35E, to include full reconstruction of the I-694/I-35W and I-694/US 10/MN 51 interchanges.
• Widen I-94 to 8 through lanes (plus auxiliary lanes as needed) between downtown Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul.
• Upgrade US 10 to a full freeway between Little Falls and Anoka.
• *NOTE*  I originally had the I-35W/MN 62 "Crosstown Commons" on this list, but a full reconstruction of the "Commons" is now underway, with expected completion in 2010.

Mississippi

• Expand the I-20/I-55/US 49 multiplex, to include full reconstruction of the western I-20/I-55/US 49 (and US 51) interchange.
• Expansion of I-10 to a minimum of 6 lanes (3 lanes per direction) statewide.
• Conversion of US 49 to a full freeway (either by upgrading the existing route, building a nearby parallel facility, or a mix of both) from Gulfport to Jackson.
• Expand I-20/I-59 to 6 lanes from their junction west of Meridian to US 45.
• Build the proposed "Jackson Airport Parkway" and associated spur routes.

Louisiana

• Expedite the reconstruction and widening of I-10 between the New Orleans Int'l Airport and I-610.
• Replace and expand the I-10 high bridge over the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal in eastern New Orleans.
• Expand I-10 to 8 through lanes between I-110 and I-12 in Baton Rouge.
• Expand I-12 to 6 lanes between Airport Rd/Northshore Blvd (Exit 80) and I-10/59 in Slidell, to include interchange improvements at all three interchanges (Airport Rd/Northshore Blvd, US 11, and I-10/I-59).
• Convert the approaches to the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway to full freeway on either end:  south to I-10 and north to I-12 (technically US 190, since US 190 is already freeway-grade between LA 22/Causeway and I-12).

Alabama

• Reconstruct and expand I-20/I-59 between I-65 and US 31/US 280, to include full reconstruction of "Malfunction Junction" (the junction between I-20/59 and I-65).
• Expedite the 6-lane widening of I-20/I-59 between Tuscaloosa and Birmingham.
• Expand I-10 to at least 6 lanes statewide (including expansion or a new bridge at the Wallace Tunnel and widening the "Bayway" crossing of Mobile Bay).
• Expand I-20 to at least 6 lanes from Birmingham to the Georgia line.
• Upgrade US 280 to a freeway from the end of the Red Bank Expressway (US 31) to Shelby CR 47 (near Chelsea).

Tennessee

• Expand I-440 to at least 6 through lanes (plus auxiliary lanes as needed) throughout.
• Reconstruct/convert US 78 to a full freeway from I-240 to the Mississippi line.
• Expand I-24 to 6 lanes from I-59 to downtown Chattanooga.
• Expand I-40 to 6 lanes through Jackson.
• (not a particular project per-se) Implement Access Management on all future 4-lane projects and retrofit onto as many existing 4/5-lane roadway segments as possible.

Virginia

• Widen I-64 to 8 through lanes plus 2 reversible express lanes (and auxiliary lanes as needed) between I-664 in Hampton and I-264 in Norfolk (CBA 2 from the Hampton Roads Crossing studies, plus continuation to the Hampton Roads area's busiest interchange).
• Expand I-64 to at least 6 through lanes between downtown Richmond and Newport News.
• Expand I-95 to at least 8 through lanes between downtown Richmond and I-495 in Springfield.
• Expand I-81 to at least 6 through lanes statewide.
• Expand the Midtown Tunnel between Portsmouth and Norfolk.

Central New York

• Reconstruct I-81 in central Binghamton, to include the NY 17 West interchange, the NY 7 interchange, and the bridge over the Chenango River, providing a minimum of 4 through lanes (2 each direction) on I-81 without requiring lane changes (as is now required northbound).
• Reconstruct the I-81 Viaduct and the I-81/690 interchange near downtown Syracuse.  As with at Binghamton, provide a minimum of 4 through lanes (2 each direction) on I-81 without requiring lane changes (does not currently exist southbound).
• Expand NY 31 to 4 lanes between Clay and Cicero.
• Expand NY 13 to 4 lanes between Horseheads and Cortland.
• Add a pair of slip ramps to/from the west on I-90 at the location where NY 49 breaks off to the northwest towards Rome.  This will improve access to/from the west on the Thruway at Utica, which right now requires backtracking from the existing interchange at Exit 31.

More states and projects to follow in the future.

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Page last modified 15 June, 2008

Copyright (C) 2008-2007,  Adam Froehlig