Fatcow Icon
DOT holds hearing Tuesday on I-95
by Bob Shiles
Staff writer
Kristine O Connor
Kristine O'Connor
slideshow

Bob Shiles

Staff writer

LUMBERTON — State Department of Transportation representatives will be in Lumberton on Tuesday for an informal hearing during which residents can learn about long-range plans for road improvements to Interstate 95.

The need for tolls along the 182 miles of I-95 that runs from South Carolina to Virginia will be one of the issues discussed at the hearing to be held from 4 to 7 p.m. in the BB&T room of the Workforce Development Center on the campus of Robeson Community College.

Tolling is the recommended means for helping to pay for $4.4 billion in improvements included in a state-commissioned study released last month, Kristine O’Connor, a planning engineer and project manager with DOT, told The Robesonian. The state is on the hook for 10 percent of that funding, $440 million, with the balance coming from the federal government.

“Tolls are the only way to fund the necessary improvements in a feasible amount of time,” O’Connor said. “If we as a state want to continue growing economically we have make sure that I-95 is a viable option.”

According to the $6.1 million I-95 Corridor Planning and Finance Study, bridges will have to be raised, other bridges will have to be rebuilt, interchanges enhanced, and the entire length of the highway widened. The work will be done in two phases, with the state paying for the first phase with bonds and the second phase will revenue from tolls.

Plans call for construction on Phase I — a 61-mile stretch of the interstate from mile marker 20 in Robeson County to mile marker 81 at the U.S. 40/I-95 interchange in Johnston County — to begin in 2016 and end sometime in 2019. The work would include widening 50 miles from marker 31 to marker 81 to eight lanes, with the remaining sections being widened to six lanes.

Phase II would begin after the first phase is complete, with electronic tolling beginning along the entire stretch of North Carolina’s part of the interstate beginning at the completion of Phase I.

Currently, the state doesn’t have the authority to toll existing highways. The state has applied to the federal government to participate in a pilot program that would permit tolling. O’Connor said that the state should find out shortly if it can participate in the pilot program.

“We encourage people to show up at the hearings,” O’Connor said. “We care what people think … . This project can’t be successful without public input.”

DOT representatives will also be attending Monday’s meeting of the Robeson County Board of Commissioners to update county officials on the proposed I-95 improvements.

O’ Connor said that those who cannot make it to Tuesday’s hearing at RCC have until March 13 to submit written comments to DOT concerning the project.

Information about the proposed road improvements, as well as seven proposed hearings to be held along the I-95 corridor, can be found on the project’s website at Driving95.com.

Reach staff writer Bob Shiles @ 910-272-6117 or bshiles@heartlandpublications.com.



Comments
(0)
Comments-icon Post a Comment
No Comments Yet
SUGAR & SPICE CONSIGNMENT and BOUITQUE
WHO DOESN'T WANT A LITTLE "SUGAR & SPICE" IN THEIR LIFE? COME VISIT OUR STORE FOR A F...
4 days ago | 0 0 comments | 4 4 recommendations | email to a friend
full story

After the Veterans Day parade in Pembroke, a memorial service was held featuring guest speaker Master Chief Rev. Rick Burnett, who served in the Navy for 24 years. | Staff video by Ali Rockett.
  • After the Veterans Day parade in Pembroke, a memorial service was held featuring guest speaker Master Chief Rev. Rick Burnett, who served in the Navy for 24 years. | Staff video by Ali Rockett.

    11.11.11 - 02:15 pm

  • After the Veterans Day parade, a memorial service was held featuring guest speaker Master Chief Rev. Rick Burnett, who served in the Navy for 24 years. | Staff video by Ali Rockett

    11.11.11 - 02:06 pm

  • Lumberton Band Day

    Nineteen bands competed at Lumberton High's Alton G. Brooks stadium for "Lumberton Band Day." Lumberton High School and The University of North Carolina at Pembroke also performed in exhibition. Here are just a few of the bands from Saturday's festivities.

    10.24.11 - 05:05 pm


News
DOT holds hearing Tuesday on I-95
Tolls being proposed for raising money
21 hrs ago | 0 0 comments | 0 0 recommendations | email to a friend
full story
Biodiesel request returns to commissioners Monday
Bob Shiles Staff writer LUMBERTON — The county commissioners are expecting a crowd on Monday as plans for a biodiesel manufacturing facility that would be in a residential neighborhood near Purnell Swett High School returns to the board. Eric T. Locklear, president of Bio-Solutions LLC, ha...
21 hrs ago | 0 0 comments | 2 2 recommendations | email to a friend
full story
Read More News
Sports
Red Springs assistant Salas to coach West Bladen
DUBLIN — Pending approval from the Bladen County School Board, current Red Springs offensive coordinator Joe Salas is expected to be named West Bladen High's head football coach. Salas coached at ...
11 hrs ago | 0 0 comments | 5 5 recommendations | email to a friend
full story
St. Pauls wideout heading to Boston
ST. PAULS — This past fall, Robbie Jackson, the top wide receiver at Dean College, a two-year JUCO school just outside of Boston in Franklin, Mass. was an NJCAA all-american honorable mention who r...
1 day 8 hrs ago | 0 0 comments | 5 5 recommendations | email to a friend
full story
Read More Sports
Opinion
Keep thugs away from our kids
Some years ago when I was writing a novel, I was struck by a passage in Plato’s “Republic.” The philosopher tells the story of a god who is condemned to suffer for his crimes by devouring his own children. In the unfinished novel, I thought that Hitler, Stalin and Pol Pot were all versions of th...
2 days 4 hrs ago | 0 0 comments | 2 2 recommendations | email to a friend
full story
Hard call for county?
The county Board of Commissioners must make a difficult decision on Monday night, and the only certainty is someone will leave the meeting unhappy. The commissioners for the second time are fielding a request for a conditional-use permit that Eric T. Locklear, president of Bio-Solutions LLC, n...
2 days 4 hrs ago | 0 0 comments | 4 4 recommendations | email to a friend
full story
Read More Opinion
Weather
Sponsored By:

RSS Feeds
All articles feed
News feed
Sports feed
Videos feed
Obituaries feed
Opinion feed
Local Features
Love story
LUMBERTON — If you think your love story belongs in the company of Harry and Sally, Romeo and Juliet or Allie and Noah, The Robesonian has just the contest for you. The Virtual Valentines Contes...
21 hrs ago | 0 0 comments | 1 1 recommendations | email to a friend
full story
Former slave A.H. Thompson was leader, builder
Alexander Hill Thompson was born into a religious family of slaves June 28, 1828. His parents were Margaret (Mollie) and the Rev. Alexander A. Thompson. Following the lead of his preacher father, ...
21 hrs ago | 0 0 comments | 2 2 recommendations | email to a friend
full story
Read More Local Features
Poll
Sponsored By:

Feb 02 12 - 07:25 AM

Do you think that U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre, a Robeson County native, should make a run for the Governor’s Office?

View Previous Polls
Special Sections
TaxGuide2012
Football 2011
2011 Robeson County Taxes
SpringHome&Garden2011