October 2002
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Alabama
MOBILE—Vulcan Materials Co. recently received an award from the National Stone, Sand and Gravel Association. Vulcan’s Blakely Island sales yard in Mobile won top awards in the distribution center category. The facility was recognized, along with 11 other Vulcan facilities, for environmental stewardship.
BIRMINGHAM—Martin Marietta Materials, Inc., recently purchased four quarry operations in central Alabama from Oldcastle Materials Group. The four quarries produce approximately 5 million tons of limestone aggregates per year and have mineral reserves in excess of 100 million tons.
Alaska
ANCHORAGE—Granite Construct-ion, Inc., recently announced that its subsidiary, Wilder Construction Co., was awarded a $16.7 million contract by the Alaska Department of Transportation. The award is for the reconstruction and widening of “C” Street and replacement of a highway bridge over Campbell Creek.
Arizona
PHOENIX—According to The Arizona Republic, the city of Phoenix is protesting All Star Materials’ rock crushing and processing project located in the Carver Foothills. Although the mine site is technically in the city of Phoenix, Maricopa County issued earthmoving permits in August 1999 to All Star. Concerns for the site include the defacing of the mountain, along with dust and noise. All Star claims that the mountainside had already been blasted and damaged a decade ago and feels that they should not be held responsible for the damage. The Phoenix Planning Commission wants the rock to remain until a restoration and reuse plan for the site is submitted.
Arkansas
LITTLE ROCK—The Interstate Highway System and the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System have been selected as Arkansas’ top two infrastructure projects of the 20th century by the American Road and Transportation Builders Association.
California
TULARE COUNTY—A rock, sand, and gravel mine was recently approved by the Tulare County Planning Commission after four years of opposition from local farmers and conservationists, according to The Fresno Bee. RMC Pacific Materials’ project will encompass 137 acres. Opponents are concerned with the mine’s impacts on well water and have plans to appeal the commission’s decision to the county board of supervisors.
Colorado
DENVER—According to the Rocky Mountain News, Representatives Mark Udall and Tom Tancredo recently asked the House Appropriations Committee to designate funds for three park-n-ride projects that would become part of a bus transit system. The projects include a $9 million park-n-ride in Broomfield, a $3.3 million transit stop and village in Boulder, and a $2.6 million expansion of the Louisville-Superior facility on the highway. Transportation officials have designated up to $753 million in long-term projects for the U.S. 36 highway.
Connecticut
HARTFORD—The state of Connecticut recently received 13 earmarks for transportation funding in the Senate’s transportation appropriations bill. The 13 earmarks are worth $69.8 million, with $29 million to go to the Hartford-New Britain Busway and Stamford Urban Transitway.
Delaware
DOVER—According to The News Journal, Kennett Pike was recently named as Delaware’s first scenic highway by the state Scenic and Historic Highways Program, which started last year and is administered by the state Department of Transportation. The program is designed to foster preservation of natural, cultural, and historic resources. Kennett Pike carries more than 20,000 travelers a day.
Florida
PASCO COUNTY—Pasco County’s Development Review Committee recently okayed the opening of a new sand mine at Long Lake Ranch southwest of State Road 54 and U.S. 41, according to the St. Petersburg Times. The decision goes against a previous plan that forced sand haulers to exit the ranch north on State Road 54 instead of south onto Sunlake Blvd. Sunlake residents have opposed ranch owners Nick and Peter Geraci over the truck route since 1997. The Geraci’s mining proposal involves the removal of 1 million cubic yards of material during one year, after which the pit will become a lake at a residential development.
Georgia
ATLANTA—According to the Atlanta Journal and Constitution, the political action committee of Vulcan Materials Co. contributed $23,500 to Governor Roy Barnes’ campaigns. Other suppliers of heavy equipment and raw materials for road building contributed another $152,125 to Barnes. The governor is pushing for construction of the 50-mile, $2.2 billion Northern Arc Highway. Vulcan Materials said it supported Barnes before he took any position on the building of the highway. Barnes denied highway critics’ comments that his support for the highway project is tied into the donations he has received. The highway has been planned for more than 20 years.
Hawaii
HONOLULU—Ciber, Inc., Denver, recently developed a port security solution that tracks incoming and outcoming ships. Ciber recently won a $1 million contract with Hawaii to provide harbor management and security software to improve safety and security at eight ports on the Hawaiian Islands, according to the Post-Newsweek Business Information, Inc. The port surveillance project in Hawaii was funded by the Coast Guard through a grant from the Department of Transportation.
Idaho
NEZ PERCE COUNTY—According to the Lewiston Morning Tribune, the Nez Perce County Planning and Zoning Commission recently approved the operation of a rock quarry and crusher near the top of Lewiston Hill. The applicants for the conditional use permit and owners of the 20-acre pit are Martin and Joan Stout.
Illinois
WAUCONDA—Developers are moving forward with projects that will add more than 1,000 homes and three supply wells to the area where the dormant Wauconda Sand and Gravel pit is located. Residents are concerned with contamination from the landfill seeping into their water supply with the addition of subdivisions and supply wells, according to the Chicago Daily Herald. The landfill has been on the Environmental Protection Agency’s Superfund list since 1982. The fund is a $1.6 billion federal program designed to clean up the most polluted areas in the country. The landfill operated as a garbage dump for more than 30 years, until it was closed in 1978 by the EPA. Tests discovered toxic materials buried in the dump by an estimated 15 companies, many believed to be large chemical and industrial waste producers.
Indiana
INDIANAPOLIS—The noise from local highways has driven residents to urge the state to consider sound barriers, according to The Indianapolis Star. State officials estimate that by 2020, more than 123,000 vehicles a day will travel Interstate 65 near 38th Street, which is a 35-percent increase. In the past decade, the state has only erected noise barriers along the Borman Expressway and along Interstate 164. However, the Indiana Department of Transportation has no designated funds for noise barriers, which fall into the lowest priority of road work.
Iowa
DES MOINES—Martin Marietta Materials, Inc., recently announced the sale of two portable plants, six production locations, and one sand plant in rural southern Iowa to Douds Stone. Annual production at the facilities has been about 700,000 tons.
Kansas
OVERLAND PARK—According to The Kansas City Star, a new plan was recently unveiled to renovate Interstate 435. The project will encompass a collection of ramps that will require the redesign of local interchanges, as well as the widening of the interstate. The plan will cost $173.4 million for the new highway interchange at Antioch Road and Interstate 435. The project is called Focus435 and will be funded primarily through the state’s system enhancement program. The project awaits federal highway officials’ approval.
Kentucky
WARREN COUNTY—According to The Bond Buyer, the proposed $100 million TriModal Transpark is embroiled in controversy over the use of tax-exempt debt as part of its funding. The project consists of an airport and rail and highway transportation services. Warren County citizen Joey Roberts filed an appeal in the state Court of Appeals to stop the issuance of $25 million of bond anticipation notes. Officials are considering other funding sources while the legality of the note issue is being determined.
Louisiana
SHREVEPORT—According to The Times, the I-49 expansion plan is struggling for funding. In July, a U.S. Senate appropriations committee approved just $4.5 million for the project, only a small portion for a project that has been estimated to cost $400 million.
Maine
FARMINGTON—According to the Central Maine Morning Sentinel, a local expert on the Sandy River who serves on the Farmington Planning Board has raised the issue of gravel mining on the river. Thomas Eastler, a geology professor at University of Maine at Farmington, recently voted to approve a gravel mining permit for farmer David Pike, whose agricultural land lies along the river. The project has been approved by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Pike will mine approximately 337,400 cu. yds. of gravel from a five-acre hole next to the river in an attempt to save an access road from erosion. Since the 1980s, Pike has lost more than three acres of prime land to flooding and erosion has isolated another 12. Eastler is urging the DEP to approve proposals to mine gravel from bars in the river to eradicate damaging erosion. More than 147 of the gravel bars in the Sandy River should be removed because they are growing and eroding farmland, but under current DEP standards it is not allowed, according to Eastler.
Maryland
BALTIMORE—According to The Daily Record, a group called Marylanders for Better Transportation is directing its voice toward the state’s policymakers in an effort to get funds needed for transportation projects. The group’s efforts are focused on establishing reliable revenue sources for the state’s transportation needs. According to a recent poll, 30 percent of Maryland voters believe the state spends too little on transportation.
Massachusetts
QUINCY—According to The Patriot Ledger, Southeastern Sand and Gravel’s earth-moving permit was recently renewed, allowing the company to complete the removal of 900,000 cubic yards of sand and gravel from 42 acres of sand pits. The company is clearing the land to build cranberry bogs.
Michigan
LANSING—The Foundation for Pavement Preservation recently honored Michigan Governor John Engler, naming him the first-ever recipient of its President’s Award for Pavement Preservation Excellence. The award recognizes Engler for “his steadfast commitment to improved asset management practices through pavement preservation.”
Minnesota
DAKOTA COUNTY—According to the Saint Paul Pioneer Press, the Minnesota Department of Transportation has made the decision to restrict traffic at a Dakota County intersection until a stoplight can be installed. The decision follows two fatal crashes at U.S. Highway 52 and Dakota County Road 46, along with seven other crashes. An interchange that would allow drivers on County 46 to cross a bridge over U.S. 52 may also be in the works.
Mississippi
JACKSON—Along with Wyoming and South Dakota, Mississippi recently lowered the legal intoxication limit from 0.10-percent blood-alcohol content to 0.08 percent, according to The Advocate. The lower limit has now been adopted by 32 states, and conforms with a federal standard required by October 2003 to avoid losing highway construction funds.
Missouri
FRANKLIN COUNTY—According to the Washington Missourian, Fred Weber, Inc. recently requested a conditional use permit to establish a facility to store and process reclaimed asphalt pavement. The request was met with light opposition during a public hearing before the Franklin County Planning and Zoning Commission. Fred Weber, Inc. wants to conduct the operation on a vacant, 36-acre parcel of land south of the Dawson Rock Quarry. A key concern of the project’s opponents is highway safety, as well as concerns about air and noise pollution. According to a spokesperson for Fred Weber, Inc., the primary operation of the facility would be storage of reclaimed asphalt. The spokesperson also stated that the actual operation would only require use of about 10 acres of land and the facility would be screened by wooded growth. The issue is being researched and a decision will be made at a later time.
Montana
HELENA—According to The Associated Press, the Montana legislature recently took $6.5 million designated for highway construction in order to help rebalance the state budget. The funds are from an account that is used to match funds in order to qualify for federal highway aid.
Nebraska
LINCOLN—The 2003 state highway construction program is funded at $326 million, $6 million more than 2002. Local improvements on city streets and county roads and bridges on the federal aid system are estimated to cost nearly $61.5 million. A total of 157 new projects will be let to contract on the state highway system, according to the Nebraska Department of Roads.
Nevada
DOUGLAS COUNTY—According to the Reno Gazette-Journal, Douglas County commissioners recently endorsed three questions on the general election ballot that involve tax measures to build, repair, and improve roads. Citizen activists, led by the Business Council of Douglas County and the Transportation 20/20 Committee, came up with a three-part solution of a 5¢ gas tax phased in over two years, a commercial construction tax of 50¢ per sq. ft. on new construction, and a 1/4¢ sales tax increase.
New Hampshire
MILTON—The Milton Selectboard recently agreed to let the state Transportation Agency take down the West Milton Truss bridge over the Lamoille River and put it in storage. Last year, the agency delayed an $890,000 project to rehabilitate the century-old bridge. The bridge will join 14 other truss bridges the agency has in storage as part of the state’s Historic Bridge Program.
New Jersey
PASSAIC COUNTY—According to The Record, the state recently awarded Passaic County $3.7 million for transportation projects. The state Department of Transportation gives money to counties for road projects each year from the state Transportation Trust Fund. County officials will be allowed to spend the money according to their priorities this year.
New Mexico
EDGEWOOD—The Torrance County Commission recently denied a zone change and operational plan to reopen a gravel pit near Edgewood, according to The Albuquerque Journal. The pit is owned by the Carl Williams family and has operated under a conditional use permit from 1999 to early 2001. Local residents have opposed the reopening of the pit due to concerns such as mismanagement by the previous pit operator, dust from trucks, and dynamite blasts.
New York
ALBANY—The state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) recently fined the Troy Sand and Gravel mining operation $10,000 for a blasting accident that propelled a rock through a car driving eastbound on Stop 13 Road north of the mining site, according to The Times Union. The DEC consent order stated the incident was a violation of the company’s mined land reclamation permit and that seismographs set up around the site showed the blast was in excess of the noise level the permit allows. Residents around the mine have formed the Concerned Citizens of Sand Lake and Poestenkill group and have hired an attorney to push for the revocation of the mine’s permit.
North Carolina
DURHAM—According to The Herald-Sun, a former rock quarry in northern Durham has been designated as a source of water, and plans are being made to convert the quarry into a new city reservoir. Engineering studies have concluded that the old Nello Teer quarry, owned by Hanson Aggregates, will serve as a supplemental source of water. Hanson’s president, Ward Nye, has offered the quarry for free as a reservoir. The quarry hasn’t been mined in more than a decade, but Hanson uses the quarry to store stone from another of its quarries. When filled, the quarry may hold as much as 1.7 billion to 2 billion gallons of water.
North Dakota
WASHBURN—Great River Energy, a wholesale electric power supplier, was responsible for displacing 220,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions during 2001 at its Coal Creek Power Plant. The company achieved this environmental milestone through the use of fly ash in concrete products. Fly ash is produced when coal is burned in power plants and can be used to replace a portion of the cement used in concrete. By displacing the cement, fly ash reduces the need for cement production, resulting in significant reductions in carbon dioxide emissions.
Ohio
CANTON—Officials and engineers from the Ohio Department of Transportation, local and county officials, contractors, and national road construction industry representatives recently met for a demonstration of Perpetual Pavement, placing six lanes of full-depth asphalt, replacing the previous four-lane concrete highway on a portion of Interstate 77.
Oklahoma
WASHINGTON, D.C.—The American Road and Transportation Builders Association recently selected Turner Turnpike and the McClellan-Kerr Navigation Systems as Oklahoma’s top two infrastructure projects of the 20th century. The Turner Turnpike was the first of Oklahoma’s toll roads and was completed in 1953. It runs for 86 miles between Oklahoma City and Tulsa. The turnpike now has six interchanges and carries about 12.5 million vehicles annually. The McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System is a 445-mile route that cuts across two states through a series of locks and dams to the Mississippi River from where vessels make their way to the Gulf of Mexico.
Oregon
EUGENE—According to The Register Guard, Eugene Sand and Gravel has cut 50 to 60 employees while it seeks a buyer or partner. The company is running low on gravel at its Delta Highway North pits and also because of the region’s recent economic slowdown. Eugene Sand has tried to open new pits on 575 acres of farmland off River Road, but the Lane County Board of Commissioners rejected the plan. Eugene Sand is appealing to the state Land Use Board of Appeals.
Pennsylvania
PITTSBURG—According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, an anti-sprawl and environmental advocacy organization, PennFuture, has proposed an alternative to the proposed 24-mile northern end of the Mon-Fayette Expressway leading to Pittsburgh and Monroeville. The group is proposing the state rebuild existing roads into a 62-mile network of boulevards, improving connections to interstate highways, expanding trails, and making transit investments. The proposal is entitled “The Citizens’ Alternative Transportation Plan,” and would cost an estimated $2.7 billion.
Rhode Island
PROVIDENCE—The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently fined Shire Corp., which performed girder work on a Route 95 overpass, for failing to protect its employees from lead paint hazards, according to The Providence Journal-Bulletin. OSHA inspectors stated the company failed to monitor air quality on the job site, failed to give workers respirators or protective clothing, failed to provide changing areas or handwashing facilities, and failed to do blood tests and provide proper training.
South Carolina
COLUMBIA—Since the state launched a $40 million program to build cable barriers in the medians of more than 300 miles of interstates, at least 100 lives have been saved, according to The State. The barriers have been hit 1,001 times since the cables were first installed. The Transportation Department decided to put up the barriers after a string of fatal crossover crashes on interstates. An analysis of crash statistics in 2000 found the rate of crossover crashes in South Carolina 50 percent higher than the national average. Since barrier construction began, deaths on the state’s interstates have fallen 25 percent.
South Dakota
ABERDEEN—According to the Aberdeen American News, the South Dakota Department of Transportation recently agreed to provide Highway-Rail Safety funds to install a pedestrian gate for a railroad crossing in Aberdeen. The project is estimated to cost $200,000, but a 10-percent local match is required.
Tennessee
MEMPHIS—According to the U.S. Newswire, Interstate 40 and Monteagle Mountain Road have been selected as Tennessee’s top two transportation infrastructure projects of the 20th century by the American Road and Transportation Builders Association. Interstate 40 crosses the full expanse of Tennessee, 451 miles from the eastern mountains to the Mississippi River.
Texas
AUSTIN—According to the Fort Worth Star Telegram, transportation planners are asking cities to give up $250 million designated for local road expansions so the money can be used on freeways and tollways. The proposal would require a greater share of local tax dollars to pay for road projects. The state would be responsible for freeways, highways, and farm roads, but cities would be expected to fund the expansion of boulevards, avenues and other roads that lead to highways. City leaders are asking for more information before they commit to stretching highway dollars and funding highway projects.
Utah
SALT LAKE CITY—According to The Desert News, Utah County’s Mountainland Association of Governments and the Wasatch Front Regional Council have united to contribute to long-range transportation planning. The two agencies, along with the Utah Department of Transportation and the Utah Transit Authority, have signed a document that establishes a joint advisory committee comprised of representatives from each agency.
Vermont
MONTPELIER—According to the States News Service, the state of Vermont is slotted to receive more than $31.3 million for transportation funding from the Senate’s transportation appropriations bill. Reconstruction of the Missisquoi Bay Bridge on Lake Champlain is to receive $5 million. The Chittenden County Transit Authority is budgeted to receive $4 million for buses and facilities. Covered bridges across the state are set to get $2 million for repairs, and the project list doesn’t stop there. The Senate appropriations committee approved the bill, and the House is currently writing their version of the bill.
Virginia
RICHMOND—The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) will borrow $570 million against future federal transportation funds this fall, according to The Richmond Times-Dispatch. VDOT plans to repay the loan by selling bonds called federal reimbursement anticipation notes. VDOT plans to spend $201 million on highway construction, put $52 million into rail and mass transit projects, and replace $317 million in lost sales-tax money that the General Assembly decided to use to balance the state budget this year.
RICHMOND—U.K.-based Robert Brett & Sons Limited purchased the remaining shares of West Sand and Gravel Company, Inc., in April 2001. The Virginia company continued to operate as West Sand and Gravel; however, as of July 15, 2002, the company changed its name to Brett Aggregates, Inc., to reflect the new corporate identity. The corporate office is located in Richmond.
Washington
POST FALLS—According to The Spokesman-Review, the city of Post Falls is opposing Spokane Rock Products’ plan to mine 80 acres within the city’s growth path, out of the 470-acre rock mine. The company proposes mining 50 acres at a time, beginning with the disputed 80 acres, and then cap the area with topsoil for farming or development when the gravel has been depleted from the area.
West Virginia
CHARLESTON—According to The Associated Press, the Office of Miners’ Health Safety and Training will receive a projected $1 million. Director Doug Conaway is making plans with the funds to increase staff and upgrade equipment. The office currently has 70 field inspectors and nine safety instructors overseeing the state’s 225 underground and 165 surface coal mines, 82 quarries, and 123 tipples and loading areas.
Wisconsin
MIDDLETON—According to The Capital Times, the Middleton City Council recently voted unanimously to oppose a proposed limestone quarry in the nearby town of Springfield. Issues of contention surrounding the proposal include blasting, truck traffic, and the potential impact on nearby springs that feed Pheasant Branch creek. The proposal is from Northwestern Stone of Middleton, which operates one quarry within the city limits.
Wyoming
CHEYENNE—According to the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle, the Wyoming Department of Transportation is taking steps to eradicate congestion problems along Interstate 80. With the massive amounts of snow received during winter, Interstate 80 is well known for complete gridlock during inclimate weather or car wrecks. Last year alone, there were 1,851 crashes on Interstate 80. One step could be setting a time limit for clearing crashes, and another could be rerouting traffic to U.S. Highway 30 during inclimate weather. Adding more highway patrol officers is also a priority.