The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Lamont wants more ‘people on board’ before rolling out plan
Gov. Ned Lamont told the Connecticut Retail Merchants Association that every single business person he has spoken to has told him that getting people around the state is key to its economic future and economic development.
That’s why he’s focused the past three months on revamping and reselling his transportation proposal to lawmakers.
However, Lamont’s first attempt at solving Connecticut’s transportation problems didn’t go so well, so he’s not going to roll this one out until he can win some legislative support.
“I’m trying to roll out a plan that is doable and finite and can make a difference now,” Lamont told some of Connecticut’s most powerful retailers at their annual meeting at the Bushnell.
Lamont said he’s talking to legislative leadership on a daily basis about the transportation proposal, but “I just don’t want to get ahead of myself.”
“I want to make sure that when we roll this out we have as many people on board as we can,” he added.
Senate Democrats have said they’re not interested in voting on a transportation plan that includes tolls if there’s no Republican support. Republican Senate Leader Len Fasano, RNorth Haven, is currently reviewing the proposal, but has yet to indicate whether he would support it.
Lamont, a Greenwich millionaire who has been described by some as folksy, said he understands that the “middle class is getting hammered and they don’t trust their politicians.”
“When it comes to fixing our roads and bridges the Trump federal transportation [department] is very clear: that money by law can only go to that road or bridge that’s being repaired,” Lamont said.
Once the roads and bridges are paid for in 10 years, the toll will come down, Lamont said.
He said the state has about 12 to 15 choke points on its highways and if he can get rid of those it would save 15 to 20 minutes a day for commuters in certain areas of the state.
“We don’t have to rebuild our highways but if we can fix a couple of these chokepoints I can take 20 minutes to a halfanhour off your commute,” Lamont said.
The other thing Lamont wants to do is speed up rail.
“MetroNorth is the backbone for this state,” Lamont said. “The fact that it takes 10 to 15 minutes longer to take that train today than it did a generation ago is a real killer.”
Lamont conceded that he’s going to need help from New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, but joked the two have become best friends following a pair of meetings over the past three months.