Five winning projects in the America’s Transportation Awards Northeast regional competition will decrease congestion, improve safety and increase productivity for highway users in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Connecticut and New York.
Eight transportation projects from five northeastern states and the District of Columbia were judged in four categories: Best Recovery Act, On Time, Under Budget and Innovative Management. The five winning projects are now in the running for the America's Transportation Awards Grand Prize and the People's Choice Award, which will be presented this fall.
"This is really about showcasing the tremendous work being done across the country by state departments of transportation," said John Horsley, executive director of the American Association of State Highway & Transportation Officials (AASHTO), when announcing the winners at the Northeast Association of State Transportation Officials annual meeting in Wilmington, Del.
The New York State Department of Transportation received two awards: a prize in the Under Budget, Small Project category, for the NYS Rte. 19 Project in Belmont, and a prize in the Innovative Management, Small Project category, for the U.S. Rte. 62 Hamburg Project.
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation's Spring Road Bridge Replacement Project won in the Best Recovery Act, Small Project Category. The Hampstead Bypass Project from the Maryland Department of Transportation won in the Innovative Management, Medium Project category. The Connecticut Department of Transportation's U.S. Rte. 7 Bypass Project won in the On Time, Medium Project category.
"It's always important to give lawmakers on the state and federal level an opportunity to see how the investments being made through the Recovery Act and other sources are being used to create jobs and preserve and modernize our aging highways and bridges." Horsley said.
Winners in the three remaining regional competitions will also compete for the Grand Prize and People's Choice Award, which will be presented at the AASHTO Annual Meeting in Biloxi, Miss., Oct. 31, 2010.
