The April 23 editorial “The $2 Billion Question: The Mon-Fayette Extension Is Not the Best Use for This Money” overlooked major assets of the expressway project and, even more puzzling, called for Mon-Fayette Expressway funding to be spent outside of the southwestern Pennsylvania region.
Two economic studies on the PA Route 51 to I-376 Expressway project cited significantly improved highway access for major brownfield developments, improved access for Mon Valley communities, major local construction employment and long-term employment gains of nearly 20,000 new jobs. Post-Gazette articles included major findings of these reports.
The potential of linking an extension of the Martin Luther King Jr. East Busway to a proposed expressway interchange in East Pittsburgh would broaden expressway benefits to also include a multimodal function. Construction of the busway extension, currently under study by the Port Authority, would serve transit systems throughout the region and provide direct mass transit access into the city of Pittsburgh, thus relieving congestion on the Parkway East. With engaged local leadership, we could see construction on the expressway begin within five years.
Rather than turning its back on the still-suffering Mon Valley, the Post-Gazette should call for quick action by the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission to approve the Mon-Fayette Expressway and ask the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission to place a high priority on construction of this crucial project.
ROBERT MACEY
Member of Allegheny County Council
District 9
West Mifflin
First Published: April 30, 2017, 4:00 a.m.