DOT Updates Capital Transportation Plan

The state Department of Transportation released its five-year capital plan this week, focused on agency priorities for leveraging over $5 billion in federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act funding.

“Connecticut’s residents and visitors will see a lot more orange cones across the state in the coming years,” DOT commissioner Garrett Eucalitto told a joint hearing of the legislature’s Transportation Committee and Finance, Revenue, and Bonding Committee March 29.

Congress approved the IIJA in 2021, dedicating over $1 trillion to overhauling the country’s infrastructure, including investments in repairing roads and bridges, public transportation, and enhanced electrical vehicle funding.

That represents the largest investment in the country’s transportation infrastructure since the 1950s and the development of the interstate highway system.

“We will continue to prioritize roadways, bridges, and rail stations based on where repairs are most needed,” Eucalitto said.

“Our broader goals continue to be reconnecting communities, and creating a more accessible, sustainable, and safe transportation infrastructure for all users in our state.”

Capital Program

Connecticut will receive approximately $5.38 billion in federal transportation funding over the next five years, an increase of $1.6 billion over previously authorized levels.

DOT anticipates spending approximately $2.2 billion in total capital funding for all transportation modes in fiscal 2023.

The capital program includes:

• $850 million for bus and rail
• $1.3 billion for roadway and bridge infrastructure
• $50 million to support renovating transportation facilities across the state

“Most of these projects are being done with an eye towards making it safer and easier to get to where you are going,” Eucalitto said.

Expedited Projects

Eucalitto added that despite challenges with inflation, labor shortages, and supply chain disruptions, DOT “continues to expedite active projects and initiate new projects to obligate the increased available funding.”

Approximately $1.37 billion worth of projects are being accelerated, including:

• Improvements to the I-91/I-691/Route 15 Interchange in Meriden
• Reconfiguration of the Route 17 On-Ramp onto Route 9 North in Middletown
• Resurfacing and safety improvements on I-95 in Stamford
• Rehabilitation and replacement of ten bridges along Route 9 and Route 72 in Berlin, New Britain, and Plainville
• New Haven Line track mobility improvements between Bridgeport and Stratford

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For more information, contact CBIA’s Pete Myers (860.244.1921).