$4.9 Billion Planned for Transportation Investments in Southwest Pennsylvania

Ed Blazina reports on the regional Transportation Improvement Program announced by the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission, which proposes $4.9 billion in funding over the next four years.

According to Blazina, the proposal reflects a changing region around Pittsburgh—in terms of traditional construction projects like bridge rehabilitation, intersection construction, and freeway extensions, and also in terms of more innovative projects, like:

• "Pittsburgh’s 'smart spines' — seven major traffic corridors that will have adaptive lights installed at all intersections to improve the flow of traffic
• "[C]onstruction of the Port Authority’s Bus Rapid Transit system to link Oakland and Downtown Pittsburgh with electric buses using dedicated lanes to provide rush-hour service every 4 minutes or less.

Blazina also breaks down the categories of spending included in the proposal:

• $2 billion on public transit
• $1.7 billion on roads and bridges
• $1.3 billion in intermodal projects

There's also $1.87 billion for the Port Authority of Allegheny County in the 2019-2022 plan, up from $130 million from the 2017-2020 version of the plan.

All of that money isn't just coming from state coffers—the proposal recommends spending from federal, state, and local sources. The proposal got a public hearing in Pittsburgh this week.