Holiday weekend brings Summer of Recovery to Florida; road project moves forward after 30-year delay

Last month, in Columbus, Ohio, President Obama ushered in the Summer of Recovery, saying, "If we're going to rebuild America's economy, we've got to rebuild America."

Well, last Friday, near Jacksonville, Florida, Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez helped break ground on a project that demonstrates exactly what President Obama was talking about.

The State Road 9B project has been on hold for 30 years. And now, through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act signed by President Obama, the wait is over.

The end of that long wait means a welcome boost for Florida's economy because construction of State Road 9B will create or maintain more than 200 jobs.

And we know that the economic impact doesn't end with those jobs.

Every American back on the job today because of a Recovery Act project is buying groceries for their family, paying their rent or mortgage, and injecting much of that payroll right back into the economy.

And as we rebuild Northeast Florida's economy, we're also accomplishing other priorities. We're improving Jacksonville's infrastructure and supporting one of our nation's busiest ports, easing the commute into and out of the city, and providing a more efficient route to the area's beaches.

As FHWA Administrator Mendez said on Friday, "This is what the Recovery Act is doing all across America. It’s helping parents give their kids a safer ride to school. It’s helping businesses deliver their goods more efficiently. And it’s helping people get home faster after a long day at work."

This 4-lane divided highway will provide better access to I-95, Jacksonville International Airport, and the Port of Jacksonville. It will relieve traffic on the heavily congested US 1 and Old St. Augustine Rd. corridors. And it will connect Duval County--home of the city of Jacksonville--with St. John's County--one of Florida's fastest growing counties.

Jeff Sheffield, executive director of the North Florida Transportation Planning Organization, called 9B one of the most important road projects in Northeast Florida: "We're going to continue to see more vehicles on Interstate 95, Interstate 295 and U.S. 1. We're going to need Florida 9B to relieve congestion."

Sheffield also noted the importance of the 9B segment for freight moving into and out of the port and airport.

This Administration is supporting jobs for Florida's economy and renewed infrastructure to help people and goods move through the greater Jacksonville area more smoothly.

FHWA Administrator Mendez with Florida's next generation of transportation engineers

And none of this would have happened without the stimulus. As Administrator Mendez told the crowd, "Recovery Act dollars are helping projects like this get back on track."

In fact, the Recovery Act has gone much further in Florida than transportation planners thought possible. Because of competitive bids for other Florida projects,  the state was able to fund additional projects, like State Road 9B.

In Florida and across the US, Americans are getting a bigger bang this 4th of July for their Recovery Act buck.

The Recovery Act has created and maintained over 2.5 million jobs in the US already, made possible 610 projects to renew Florida's infrastructure, and stretched the value of a dollar.

The Recovery Act is working for Florida. And it's working for America.

Comments

[Abhishek]

I am glad that this city has more jobs due to this project. The construction of 9B eases traffic flow south of Jacksonville into St. John's county taking the load out off i95 south.

However, since it makes commuting to numerous subdivisions in St. John's county easier, it encourages sprawl and dependency on cars (and oil, foreign and domestic).

In the effort to rebuild America, I hope the direction taken is of the highest quality.

[Michael E. Bailey]

The Recovery Act has had a major and positive impact and that impact is just beginning. It is important for building or modernizing major roads like Highway 9B in Jacksonville and helping to support modernization of city roads into accessible, safe roads for walking or using a wheelchair on. It has been great. We are now beginning to look at a new independent living program for the 21st Century--Aging In Place--that will let seniors and disabled persons stay in their homes with the right mix of supports instead of going to nursing homes. This will be considerably cheaper than nursing homes and will have far greater benefits for the people concerned. But the Aging In Place to be successful, there must be accessible transit that is supported by accessible bus stops and accessible and safe streets. We also need good transit and accessible streets to make the Clean Air Act work, and for SB. 375, the California Land-Use Planning Act; and AB. 287, the Employment First Policy in California for disabled persons, all need to have good transit systems and accessible streets to work and the Recovery Act helps get us there. Best wishes, Michael E. Bailey.

[Alvin]

Glad that the gov is making places more connected. Time for them to pull their socks up and make a better place for every US citizen.

[Boom Trucks]

I've got close friends in Ocala, Florida. Just last month one of the biggest dairies in the country that were just down the road from my friends closed down. Another factory closed down. So many people are out of work and desperate. This recovery act is really needed and I'm glad to see construction projects breaking ground now. I sure hope it helps the whole state and not just Jacksonville.

[A. Greyson]

Having driven cross-state routinely for several years, it's clear to me that the 95 is in need of some relief.

What most impresses me with this project though isn't so much the scale of it in a time when the U.S. government is indebted beyond the belief of our forefathers, but that it is apparently using concrete, as opposed to asphalt - a true testament to the solidarity of this effort, as it lasts decades longer.

Most roads in the states are asphalt in my experience and to me it's hard to understand how anyone could be so shortsighted as to think that this is the most efficient and cost efficient means of constructing such a vital piece of our infrastructure. I'm not an engineer though, so maybe I'm not missing something.

One thing in this article I'm not clear about is the definition of "maintain" in the context of jobs effected by this project.

What percentage of the 200 jobs mentioned are being maintained, rather than created and were these positions in jeopardy without such maintenance?

I'm also curious about Phase 2 - is there any word on funding for this?

A. Greyson

[Jonothan]

While there are a fair few decrying this move as being reckless spending, or as overlooking the potential for
improvement of existing roadways to alleviate traffic congestion, as someone who has seen how difficult it has gradually become to get to and fro the city of Jacksonville and its beaches, ports and Airports over the past decade, I am not one to complain.

Just the fact that drivers headed south of Jacksonville will be able to bypass the interstate is going to really speed things up.

Having said that, I still think that a big portion of the problem behind the bumper to bumper traffic in Duval County could be fixed by adding lanes to 9A.

Amtrak is probably going to be necessary one day but until that day comes improvements like this are integral to keeping this area moving.