The Alaska Department of Transportation (DOT) is amending the the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) - and it's open for comment through Monday, April 14. 

At issue is funding for the Juneau road extension which is scheduled to go to bid this summer.

Please don’t miss the opportunity to weigh-in on the Juneau road extension with DOT and Governor Palin. You can find more information at http://dot.alaska.gov/stwdplng/cip_stip/stip06_09.shtml.

Send your comments to:

Division of Program Development
P.O Box 112500
3132 Channel Drive, Suite 200
Juneau, AK 99802
dot.stip@alaska.gov

Please copy:

Governor Sarah Palin
P.O Box 110001
Juneau, AK  99811
sarah.palin@alaska.gov

David Miller, Administrator
Federal Highway Administration – Alaska Division
P.O. Box 21648
Juneau, AK 99802
david.c.miller@fhwa.dot.gov

Points you can make include:

• Remove the Juneau Access Project from the STIP until DOT can show a "reasonable expectation of full project funding".
• DOT has not identified the source for $244 million of its estimated $374 million projected road costs.
• DOT cannot show a "reasonable expectation of full project funding" until it comes up with a realistic cost estimate.
• DOT cannot make a realistic cost estimate until the geotechnical work begun by Golder Associates is completed so that DOT knows where the final alignment will be, where tunnels are needed, the extent of blasting and retaining walls, and so on.
• Alaska can't afford this unnecessary road because there are more urgent needs for our dwindling transportation dollars.

PS – Even if you can’t make the deadline this Monday, please write Governor Sarah Palin and encourage her to put a stop to dead-end road.  This is tremendously important because Governor Palin is the ultimate decision-maker.