Burns Calls On Barrow To Co-Sponsor I-3 And I-14 Interstate Bills

February-15, 2006

Burns Calls On Barrow To Co-Sponsor I-3 And I-14 Interstate Bills

(SAVANNAH, GA) - Max Burns, former Congressman and candidate for Georgia's New 12th District, today challenged Athens Congressman John Barrow to co-sponsor two bills introduced by Congressman Charlie Norwood that would begin the process to create two new interstates in Georgia's 12th District. Burns called on Barrow to co-sponsor these pieces of legislation after Barrow announced today that he was leaving the House Committee on Education and the Workforce and joining the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

"Mr. Barrow said the interstates were ‘a good idea,' so now, as a member of the Transportation committee, he should support the legislation," says Burns. "Mr. Barrow should join fellow Georgia Congressmen Kingston, Norwood, Marshall and Westmoreland and co-sponsor this bi-partisan legislation. People all across the new 12th District are excited about these two new roads."

Congressman Norwood introduced H.R. 281 and H.R. 301, the 14th Amendment Interstate Highway Initiation Act and the 3rd Infantry Division Highway Initiation Act of 2005 respectively, early in the 109th Congress. Both these bills direct the Secretary of Transportation to study and report to the appropriate congressional committees the steps and estimated funding necessary to designate and construct new interstate routes in Georgia. I-3, named for the 3rd Infantry Division, will connect from Savannah, Georgia, to Knoxville, Tennessee; and I-14, named for the 14th Amendment Highway, would connect Augusta, Georgia, to Natchez, Mississippi. Last year, Congress approved $1.32 million in funding to study the feasibility of each of the interstates Burns first proposed during the 108th Congress.

"Eighty percent of all jobs in the United States are located within ten miles of an interstate," says Burns. "These two interstates will open the new 12th District with the rest of the southeast and create jobs in southeast Georgia so our children don't have to leave home to find a job that supports their family."

Burns has made transportation solutions to create more opportunities for his communities a key part of his campaign's agenda. Burns acknowledges that Georgia's transportation infrastructure is the key to the long-term economic success of the economy; and by having good roads, easy access to the Port of Savannah, and a quality infrastructure system, southeast Georgia will prosper. Constructing the two new will bring jobs and economic development to under served areas in Georgia and connect the entire southeast to the Port of Savannah, meaning more jobs and opportunities for our communities.

http://www.maxburns.com/archive_detail.cfm?news_id=83