HARRISBURG - State Senator John Gordner (R-27) is confident that the Central Susquehanna Valley Thruway (CSVT) will be a reality, despite snags to pass the bill that would have provided the majority of the funding for its construction.
When asked about the funding and the thruway's future, Gordner said Monday persistence will win out, noting the press conference he called on April 3 and the amount of support there was for the $558 million project.
"I believe in getting out in front of an issue that is important to my legislative district," Gordner said. "The flood control project in Mount Carmel did not happen in a day or a year. The Anthracite Outdoor Adventure Area did not happen in a day or a year. I remain optimistic that we will pass a transportation funding plan in the near future that exceeds the $1.6 billion proposed by Gov. Corbett."
Funding issues
The 13-mile road and bridge project, expected to take 10 years to construct, would help alleviate congestion on the Routes 11 and 15 "strip" between Selinsgrove and Shamokin Dam and Route 147 in the Northumberland area.
Gordner said the Senate passed the bill for it on June 5, but the House did not pass it before they left for a session break in July.
If there had been more time, he said, the bill might have passed.
"I believed that there was substantial progress made on the issue, and the Senate bill was amended and reported out of the House Transportation Committee on June 27," he said.
The senator said that everything was going the right way with everyone doing their part, including the governor, who proposed the plan in February, PennDOT Secretary Barry Schoch, who traveled the state in support, and the state Senate, which approved a $2.5 billion plan with bipartisan support.
From there, Gordner said, it began to unravel slightly when the transportation bill became intertwined with a plan to privatize the state's liquor industry.
"I was disappointed that labor ended up quietly urging House Democratic members to not support the transportation bill in hopes of 'killing' the liquor privatization bill," he said.
Many have called for the General Assembly to go in to a special session in order to pass the bill, but Gordner doesn't feel it is necessary.
"I'm not a fan of special sessions, because the General Assembly can do everything in a regular session that we can do in a special session," he said.
Money committed
While Corbett set a goal to pass the privatization bills and transportation bills for July 1, the only thing they were required to do was pass a budget, which was accomplished.
The increase in funding would come by phasing out a cap on a wholesale fuel tax over the next five years, generating $2 billion a year for highways, bridges, mass transit and other transportation programs.
The CSVT has already received a $150 million commitment from the federal Appalachian Regional Commission.
"Senate Bill 1 would provide funding to not only the CSVT, but to more than 100 other bridge and road projects in the Northumberland County area over the next 10 years, reaching into every corner and municipality, at a cost of less than $3 a week for the average driver."
Gordner looks at the transportation bill as a "health and safety issue" that will provide jobs.
"Pennsylvania leads the nation in structurally deficient bridges with more than 4,400 of them," Gordner said. "The bill will also lead to 50,000 jobs over the next 10 years and will help a segment of the economy that has seen a 20 percent unemployment rate."
Still, despite the fact that the plan has not been passed yet, the senator said he doesn't regret calling that April press conference, to show the need for it.
"When you know that your area has the biggest single project in the state in a plan like that, you need to jump out in front in support of it or risk losing the monies associated with it to other areas of the state that want projects more and are willing to support them," he said.