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Congressman Doyle Secures Authorization for
Local Projects in Transportation Bill
Pittsburgh, PA - July 29, 2005 - U.S. Representative Mike Doyle
(PA-14)announced today that the transportation bill approved by
the House of Representatives today contained $12.8 million for projects
in Pennsylvania’s 14th Congressional District.
“I’m happy to report that I was successful in securing more than $12 million in federal funding for these important local transportation projects,” Congressman Doyle said today. “These projects will significantly improve the quality of life for the residents of Allegheny County.”
“Improvements in our nation’s transportation infrastructure not only provide substantial economic stimulus and job creation,” Congressman Doyle added. “They reduce air pollution and traffic congestion as well. In addition, the trails authorized in this bill will provide Americans with important new recreation options.”
The House voted to approve the final version of the Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (TEA-LU) earlier today by a vote of 412 to 8. The Senate is expected to approve the bill later today. This legislation authorizes federal surface transportation programs for six years. TEA-LU covers highways, bridges, mass transit, and a number of transportation-related programs like safety and research.
Congressman Doyle secured authorizations in the legislation for the following projects in Pennsylvania’s 14th Congressional District:
$5.6 million – Duquesne/McKeesport flyover ramps
$ 960,000 – Convention Center roadway reconstruction
$ 880,000 – pedestrian and water access to Convention Center
$ 800,000 – Brighton Road Extension
$ 800,000 – Reesdale Street roadway reconfiguration to allow HOV
access to new parking facility
$ 800,000 – Allegheny County Urban Runoff Mitigation
$ 720,000 – installation of comprehensive signage across Pittsburgh’s
urban parks
$ 640,000 – widening and modernizing Bates Street, replacing Bates
Street Bridge
$ 600,000 – complete Pittsburgh Riverfront Trail Network including
Hot Metal Bridge
$ 600,000 – River Trail and Esplanade Development at the Southside
Riverfront Park
$ 418,000 – new “clean fuel” buses for Port Authority
In addition, Congressman Doyle worked successfully to have authorizations
for the following transit projects included in the bill:
North Shore Connector
Stage II Light Rail Transit Rehabilitation Project
Keystone West Passenger Rail Corridor in Blair, Cambria, Westmoreland,
and Allegheny Counties
East West Corridor Rapid Transit
Martin Luther King Jr. Busway Extension
Oakland Technology Corridor
The largest 14th District project in the bill consists of the construction of “flyover ramps” to provide better access to The City Center of Duquesne and the Industrial Center of McKeesport. The City Center of Duquesne and the Industrial Center of McKeesport are both former steel plant sites that are being redeveloped into industrial parks. The City Center of Duquesne site was formerly the US Steel Duquesne Works, and the Industrial Center of McKeesport is located on the site of the old US Steel National Tube Works.
The two sites had been unused and vacant for years – severely hindering the local economy. Local officials have been working for years to clean up and redevelop these two sites, but a critical marketing, safety, and convenience issue has been the restricted access to the sites across extremely active railroad tracks. The development of a flyover” ramp at each site, to give unrestricted vehicular and pedestrian access to them, will greatly enhance the ongoing cooperative efforts to return these Mon Valley sites to fully productive use.
Congressman Doyle secured $2.6 million for the Duquesne and McKeesport flyover ramps in the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (P.L. 105-178) in 1997. With the $5.6 million included in H.R. 3, Congressman Doyle will have secured $8.2 million for this project.
“I was pleased that Senator Santorum was able to secure an additional $3 million for the Duquesne and McKeesport flyover ramps,” Congressman Doyle said today. “With the money that Senator Santorum secured for this project, we’ve secured all of the funding needed to complete this important project.”
“This bill will create 40,000 jobs for every billion dollars it spends – and that’s just during the construction phase,” Congressman Doyle observed. “After that, we’ll all benefit from a better, faster transportation system and reduced travel times.”
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