Does this surprise anyone?

Darien and Fairfield officials object to a preliminary draft of a state Department of Transportation study on improving highway rest stops and increasing truck parking.

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Recommended improvements include an overhaul of the rest areas that would feature more truck parking, better concessions and more informative tourism centers.

Enacting all the recommendations could cost $400 million to $500 million, DOT officials have said.

Fairfield officials said there is no need to spend so much money on the rest areas.

“The plan is asinine,” Fairfield First Selectman Kenneth Flatto said. “It will have a detrimental effect on a significant area. I don’t know how they can put a few trucks over the needs of Connecticut citizens.”

The construction could affect the residential area surrounding the Interstate 95 service plaza, Flatto said. Adding truck parking may attract more truckers to the state at a time when it should be finding ways to reduce truck traffic, he added.

Darien officials support many of the state’s recommendations but oppose a proposed overpass on I-95 that would connect the service plaza on the northbound side to the southbound side, First Selectwoman Evonne Klein said.

“It’s not an appropriate overall,” Klein said. “The study is well done, but we have significant issues with (the overpass). The ramp doesn’t seem necessary. It’s out of character with the area, and it’s expensive.”

DOT officials said there is plenty of time for the public to review the study and make objections before a final report is issued.

“The department is performing the study to ascertain the needs and deficiencies of the current infrastructure,” DOT spokesman Kevin Nursick said.

Input from the public hearings, which are tentatively scheduled to take place across the state in August and September, “will very likely entail the department modifying any recommendations to account for public concerns,” Nursick added.

Trucking industry advocates are more supportive of the state’s preliminary recommendations, saying the larger truck parking areas and highway overpasses would increase capacity and create easier access to both sides of I-95.

Mike Riley, president of the Connecticut Motor Transport Association, called some of the complaints “raging NIMBY,” or not in my back yard, and said new rest areas are needed to help truckers comply with state laws.

“There are laws about drivers getting the necessary rest,” Riley said. “That’s not fair to truck drivers who are not provided with places where they can rest.”

Having recently completed my road trip to South Carolina, I can say that state rest stops whether they are filled with concessions or not, are handy for long haul road trips. That crappy state of I-95 in Connecticut compared to I-95 in everywhere else is evident. The CT DOT has mismanaged road and bridge maintenance for too long. While I have doubts about the CT DOT, the concept of improved rest stop facilities is a no brainer. If our economy is to be based on tourism, then Connecticut has to become more inviting from the highways.

source: Advocate, Some towns are wary of state’s plans to expand highway rest areas, By Mark Ginocchio, July 23 2007