Good roads make good sense

Good roads make good sense

Highways were an important part of the political conversation in the Mahoning Valley last week.

Jolene Molitoris, a Valley native who is the Ohio Department of Transportation director, discussed plans at a Regional Chamber luncheon for additional improvements to U.S. Route 224 in Boardman, and the resurfacing of Interstate 80 in Girard, Liberty and Austintown.

Patrick Ungaro, Liberty Township administrator, former Youngstown mayor and a member of the Transportation Review Advisory Council, was talking about a project that got away — for now — the $204 million widening of Interstate 80 between I-680 and Belmont Avenue. TRAC, which sets the priority for major highway projects, has given that project tier 2 status. But Ungaro says he’s doing everything he can to push the project and hopes that stimulus money will accelerate the funding schedule.

And U.S. Sen. George Voinovich was making rounds in the Valley, including a stop at The Vindicator, where he talked about his support for the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act, which includes temporary extension of the transportation reauthorization bill.

Voinovich correctly notes that spending on highways makes perfect sense these days. It provides employment for construction workers and for suppliers of raw materials, including steel. It addresses a growing need to shore up an aging infrastructure. And good highways and bridges are vital to economic development.

We’d note that in the Mahoning Valley, where three major highways intersect — and where unemployment remains high — transportation money has a greater potential to improve conditions on the ground than almost anywhere else.