03/21/11 A bill calling for an in-depth, bipartisan legislative review of Indiana’s roads, bridges and rails will now travel to Gov. Mitch Daniels’ desk where it could be signed into law.
Two Northwestern Indiana lawmakers, State Rep. Ed Soliday and State Sen. Ed Charbonneau (Rs-Valparaiso), spearheaded efforts to pass House Bill 1371. This bill establishes a legislative study committee that will assess Indiana’s transportation infrastructure, plan for future needs and determine how to best fund projects. HB 1371, authored by Soliday and sponsored by Charbonneau in the upper chamber, was approved without amendments by votes of 98-0 in the House of Representatives and 43-6 in the Senate.
“As the Crossroads of America, Indiana has some of the finest and highly used transportation infrastructure in the nation,” Charbonneau said. “It is important to study these matters, because of safety concerns and the important role transportation plays in economic stability and job growth.”
Charbonneau said throughout the next five years, the Joint Study Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Assessment and Solutions will report their findings on various transportation matters:
- Conditions of infrastructure;
- Demands and needs through 2035 in conjunction with the Indiana Department of Transportation;
- Capabilities of existing infrastructure in meeting demands;
- Roles of state, county and municipal government and the private sector in meeting demands; and
- Sources of funding.
