Is There a "Big Dig" in Hartford's Future

Activists in Hartford want the DOT to do someting other than rebuild the "Aetna Viaduct" in Hartford. The elevated section of I-84 will need to be rebuilt sometime in the future and they are looking at burying it, re-routing it or turning I-84 into a boulevard. (See article.)

It’s easy to criticize the highway now. The original plans were to have a ring road carry most of the traffic away from the downtown. That’s why a full interchange was not built for the intersection of I-84 and I-91 in downtown Hartford until much later. But suburban voters blocked the ring road and now everyone drives through the city.

But, as usual, the real issue will be money. Rebuilding the elevated highway will be expensive. Burying it will increase the project costs by an order of magnitude. Our current funding sources are inadequate. Federal dollars are uncertain. Connecticut will have to look at new ways to fund transportation projects: electronic tolling, public-private partnerships, etc.