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Wednesday, 05 October 2011 15:52 |
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| Cecil Bothwell |
On Sept. 7, Gov. Beverly Perdue announced that several highway loop projects would be accelerated, thanks to infusion of federal funds, and reduced real estate and construction costs due to the recession.
The section of I-26 between I-40 and Haywood Rd. is among those projects to be speeded up. Aquisition of right-of-way is now slated to begin in 2018 and construction in 2020.
I note that this still leaves the highly problematic section of the I-26 connector somewhere out in the very indefinite future. For those who are eager to get the project built, that’s dismaying at best. For my part, I continue to believe that the long delay in reconfiguration of I-26 and I-240 will benefit the city.
NCDOT remains committed to an 8-lane highway here (which means 10 lanes
including on/off ramps through most of that stretch), while other cities
around the country are ripping out such huge projects to restore
splintered urban centers.
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Cecil Bothwell, a member of Asheville City Council and a self-proclaimed
progressive-libertarian, is running for the Democratic nomination for
the seat now held by U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler, D-Waynesville.
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