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The Mon-Fayette Expressway is a smart-growth way to move beyond a cramped notion of 'sustainability'
Wednesday, October 03, 2001
By Joseph P. Kirk
The concept of sustainability is emerging as a key policy issue for the future of southwestern Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, numerous supporters of sustainability view it as a carte blanche no-growth strategy -- and a rejection of any and all new highway projects.
Southwestern Pennsylvania will not reach its potential if "sustainability" equals just "sustaining" our current state of economic stagnation and population decline.
In too many cases, we are not competitive -- thus missing out on major corporate expansions and relocations. Based on statements by numerous site relocation specialists who know our area, this lack of economic competitiveness can be significantly attributed to our inadequate highway network.
To address our dilemma, we need to advance transportation projects that will improve our economic competitiveness and promote smart growth. While numerous transportation improvements are necessary, completion of the Mon-Fayette Expressway offers a major case-in-point for a smart growth strategy.
More than 35 miles of the 70-mile expressway will be completed by spring 2002. Two sections remain to be constructed: the section in Allegheny County between Route 51 and Pittsburgh-Monroeville, and the Brownsville-to-Uniontown section in Fayette County. Both of these projects are funded for all design work and land acquisition. While the Fayette County project is essential and should be advanced, I will focus here on the portion of the expressway project planned for Allegheny County.
Key benefits of the Route-51-to-Pittsburgh/Monroeville project include:
This project has met tedious federal requirements for new highway projects, has survived a federal lawsuit and is broadly supported in the communities it would serve.
As for proponents of a mass transit-only solution: the Southwestern Pennsylvania Planning Commission found that planned transit improvements alone in the Parkway East corridor will not address current or projected traffic congestion. This even includes the proposed high-speed maglev project. SPC, the federally designated transportation planning organization for the region, has to follow stringent federal requirements that include extensive air quality assessments to reach this conclusion.
Addressing traffic congestion that the 130,000-plus commuters on the Parkway East face every day is not an issue of highways vs. transit but instead of solving a major transportation problem in a comprehensive manner. To assure coordination with mass transit, the expressway would be directly linked with the Martin Luther King Jr. East Busway extension under development by the Port Authority.
As for potential impacts on communities, the Turnpike Commission has spent literally millions of dollars to identify environmental issues and has worked closely with communities on mitigation measures to minimize the impact of the expressway project. Innovative actions of the Turnpike Commission have involved supporting a variety of measures including the extension of an existing bike trail.
Then there is the issue of economic conditions in the Mon Valley. It is no coincidence that the Mon Valley is the largest area of continued economic distress in Allegheny County and the only major section of the county without interstate-grade transportation access.
Sustaining the economic status quo in the Mon Valley is simply not acceptable. That's why 18 local governments in Allegheny County approved a resolution for the expressway project and a financing plan to complete the project in a timely fashion. The resolution was passed by the Allegheny County Council in a rare unanimous vote.
Local governments in the Mon Valley recognize that the Route-51-to-Pittsburgh expressway project is a smart growth solution that would:
The Route-51-to-Pittsburgh/Monroeville expressway project will address major traffic congestion on the Parkway East, reduce commuter and truck traffic on neighborhood streets and serve as the foundation for the economic revitalization of the Mon Valley.
It is time we joined in united effort with the 46 local governments from Allegheny to Fayette County that have passed a resolution calling for implementation of a financing strategy to assure the timely completion of the entire Mon-Fayette Expressway.
Joseph P. Kirk is chairman of the Mon Valley/Fayette Expressway and Southern Beltway Alliance. 
Vastly improved access to the long-disconnected and still economically depressed Mon Valley. Significant reduction in traffic congestion in the Parkway East corridor. Reduction of rush-hour and truck traffic on neighborhood streets in the city of Pittsburgh. Provide transportation access to brownfield industrial sites in Duquesne, McKeesport, Braddock, Swissvale, Hazelwood and Homestead and the Keystone Commons facility in East Pittsburgh. Encourage the location of new families in 17 Mon Valley communities by improving transportation access to jobs throughout the region. Vastly improve transportation access for the 715 manufacturing firms located within a two-mile radius of the expressway that employ an estimated 25,000 persons.