Decision on expressway must come from the top

Though the bureaucrats in the Ohio Department of Transportation's Region 4 office appear to have concluded that it's time to pull the plug on the long-proposed Hubbard Arterial Highway, we believe the final decision must come from Gov. Bob Taft.
Why? Because Taft and his predecessor, George V. Voinovich, were the ones who pumped new life into a project that sat dormant for almost 40 years.
While campaigning in Mahoning and Trumbull counties, Voinovich and Taft pledged that ODOT would be a partner in the construction of the highway -- it would connect Albert Street on Youngstown's East Side to Interstate 80 in Hubbard Township -- if the region were able to secure federal money. It fell to then Congressman James A. Traficant Jr. of Poland, D-17th, to persuade House leaders to include the project in the federal highway bill.
Traficant was able to funnel dollars from Washington into the state's coffers for the planning phase, thereby resurrecting the project. During his tenure as governor, Voinovich instructed ODOT to put Hubbard Expressway on a fast track, arguing that the highway was an important piece of the Valley's economic development jigsaw puzzle.
Pressure in Washington
When he campaigned in the Valley, Taft embraced several initiatives his Republican predecessor had begun, including the expressway. Because of this continued support from Columbus, Traficant was able to pressure Washington for additional federal dollars.
Traficant's untimely departure from Capitol Hill meant that the Hubbard Expressway project had lost one of its most vocal proponents.
That might explain the June 24 letter from William E. Murphy, ODOT District 4 planning and programs administrator, to communities in Mahoning and Trumbull counties and to the Eastgate Regional Council of Governments. Murphy's letter says the state transportation department is no longer interested in being the lead agency for the project and that a local community or some public agency, such as the council of governments, should step forward.
If none does by Aug. 4, Murphy warns, the project will be closed. He adds it could be reopened later.
But given the four decades that have passed since it was first conceived, and the campaign promises made to the Valley by the current and former governor of Ohio, we believe the region has a right to hear from Taft and Voinovich. They were lauded publicly by local officials and by this newspaper for their commitment to this important project.
Job-creation effort
Taft and Voinovich share the belief that transportation is the key to a region's job-creation effort. Not only would the expressway provide easy access to the East Side of Youngstown, but it would open land for development.
Since the Federal Highway Administration is involved by virtue of Traficant's securing federal dollars for the project, we would also ask Voinovich and Ohio's other senator, Mike DeWine, who served as lieutenant governor under Voinovich, to organize a meeting between Valley officials and the highway administration.
The either-or plan put forth by Murphy is unacceptable. We do not believe that every avenue for keeping the project alive has been pursued. We are also unwilling to let a midlevel bureaucrat make a decision that would have such a major impact on the Valley's future.
If the Hubbard Expressway is to die, it should be Taft and Voinovich who read the last rites.