Tulsa World
by: JIM MYERS World Washington Bureau
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
7/26/2011 4:15:56 AM
WASHINGTON - Oklahoma Transportation Secretary Gary Ridley said it "makes sense" to replace an Interstate 244 bridge over the Arkansas River with a double-decker structure that some day could provide rail service to Tulsa.
"All we're doing is building it where a future rail line could be built on the bridge, making it where it is not prohibitive," Ridley said in a recent interview. "You can't go back and do it. It does leave the option open."
He put the additional cost to Oklahoma for the rail component at about $6 million.
"We received $49.5 million," Ridley said, referring to a federal grant the state received that allowed the roughly $65 million bridge project to not only move forward but to get under way much faster.
The veteran transportation official's comments came in response to a report on wasteful spending in the state released last week by U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla... FULL ARTICLE
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Tue, July 26, 2011
by John Cox