DRIC is dead [[for now)

[BShea]

Unsure why no one else has written about this so far today, but Mike Bishop announced to reporters today that DRIC is dead in Lansing, and punted the issue to Snyder and the new Legislature next year.

That means a new vote in the House, which will be GOP-controlled in 2011. If the P3 bill that's the enabling legislation for DRIC gets through that chamber, it will then go to the Senate, which will have a Republican super-majority. Doesn't seem likely to pass, at least not in a form DRIC backers want. Could end up being a poison-pill bill.

Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop says Legislature won't take up DRIC
By Bill Shea
DRIC is dead, at least for now in Michigan.
State Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop said today the Legislature will not take up the issue during the current lame-duck session the bills needed to authorize the proposed Detroit River International Crossing.
"We are going to leave this very complex issue for the next administration," Bishop said in a conference call with reporters.


http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...t-take-up-dric

[rb336]

Where did you get "dead" out of that? As long as republicans keep spewing their BS dogma, it will remain what it is - another great idea bogged down by idiocy

[Bearinabox]

Canada already has begun construction of the $1.5 billion Windsor-Essex Parkway that in the main feeder highway for DRIC, designed to bypass traffic away from downtown Windsor.

So what happens to this parkway project if DRIC never passes? It sounds like the Canadians are pretty confident it's going to happen one way or another.

[Novine]

They can't kick Bishop out of Lansing fast enough. He's a do-nothing loser who's been leeching off the taxpayers for over a decade and not doing a thing to earn his pay. He's largely responsible for gridlock that has paralyzed Lansing from getting anything done while Michigan's economy has floundered. Good riddance.

[BShea]

It's dead for now because the Legislature is not going to take up the enabling legislation needed for MDOT to spend any money to move forward on it. Without that, it's not happening. When it comes up again next year, it faces a GOP-controlled House and a GOP super-majority in the Senate.

Word is that the Canadians are feeling out the U.S. federal government on taking over for MDOT to get it built. I know Ray LaHood has said in public he backs it, but there's been almost nothing said by Michigan's delegation about DRIC. Even less by the administration. I don't know Hansen Clarke's position on it [[will look it up in a few mins), and he's the one replacing Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick in Congress for Detroit -- and she was a recipient of campaign funding from the anti-DRIC Moroun family. I don't know if Clarke took money from Moroun -- something else I need to research.

I don't think Snyder has been definitive on his position on DRIC. Granholm was on record in favor of both bridge projects.

As for the Windsor-Essex Parkway, the Canadians are confident DRIC will be built, so they're forging ahead. If it's not, there will be a really, really $1.5 billion highway to Brighton Beach.

[Detroitnerd]

Mike Bishop: The only Bishop that's also a pawn.

[GOAT]

You can thank that troll Matty Maroun and the disgusting politicians who suck up to his money for this one. how do these fuckers sleep at night? Seriously. To be so easily bought and sold I would put a rifle in my mouth and pull the trigger if it was me. But obviously these scum, who Novine is correct about, believe the almighty dollar, regardless of where it comes from it king.

I still believe the Feds will pull the trigger and get this going for National Security issues alone. There is more to this than meets the eye and Matty may be able to buy Michigan but he can't buy the Canadian gov't and their reach into the White House.

[SWMAP]

Maybe there's another way. This from a story in the Windsor Star last week:
"Federal officials and those connected to the DRIC border project are said to be in discussions with counterparts in Washington to draw up an alternate plan if the state of Michigan continues to drag its feet on political approval for the government-backed Windsor-Detroit bridge.
"We are not involved in that, but that has been a possibility from the beginning, that if Michigan could not carry this out, Washington could step in," said Sarah Hubbard, Senior Vice President of Government Relations for the Detroit Regional Chamber.
"I think it's a real possibility. The federal government and Washington have the authority to identify crossing needs and certainly able to do it if they see fit."

For reading clarity, think in this instance the "federal government" refers to Canada's federal government.

[BShea]

I don't think the U.S. feds consider it a national security priority. The redundancy argument can be made for natural disasters, accidents, etc. -- stuff that can and has closed the bridge -- but not really for terrorism. The terrorist attack meme is pretty silly because if the terrorists can defeat the post 9/11 security to get on the bridge with enough explosives to actually destroy the span, you'd think they'd be smart enough to remember to blow up the other bridge that's within site of the first one.

I think we'll get a good sense soon of what the Congressional and administration's view of taking over DRIC will be. This seems like the golden PR moment for a federal lawmaker or for the administration to look like a savior. The administration is committed to infrastructure, so it's possible. Just haven't heard much federally since DRIC took off in 2002.

[GOAT]

Considering 28% of trade between USA and Canada goes between Windsor and Detroit, I would think that National Security would be the issue whether it is terrorism [[doubtful), bridge closing due to Maroun's shenanigans when he doesn't get his way [[very realistic), increased trade in the near future [[very plausible).

I bet this shit drags on for another year or so and then the economy picks up and it costs twice as much...wanna bet?

[swingline]

As for the Windsor-Essex Parkway, the Canadians are confident DRIC will be built, so they're forging ahead. If it's not, there will be a really, really $1.5 billion highway to Brighton Beach.

Why is this parkway so expensive? ARTBA, the road builders' trade association in the U.S. estimates that it only costs about $12 million per mile to construct a new six lane divided highway in an urban area. Sure there might be some additional right of way costs for this parkway, but how does the cost get to $1.5 billion?

[Magnatomicflux]

It's a below grade highway, with tunnels, parks on top of the tunnels, roundabouts, the reconstruction of EC Row west, and the buy out and demolishment of buisness and homes. Then there are the retention ponds and drainage ditches thruout the west end that need to be realigned ....all kinds of stuff.

It's this much because Windsor demanded it. The federal government wanted to just give us a real quick fix that just routed shit back to the Ambassador bridge.

[kraig]

Maybe there's another way. This from a story in the Windsor Star last week:
"Federal officials and those connected to the DRIC border project are said to be in discussions with counterparts in Washington to draw up an alternate plan if the state of Michigan continues to drag its feet on political approval for the government-backed Windsor-Detroit bridge.
"We are not involved in that, but that has been a possibility from the beginning, that if Michigan could not carry this out, Washington could step in," said Sarah Hubbard, Senior Vice President of Government Relations for the Detroit Regional Chamber.
"I think it's a real possibility. The federal government and Washington have the authority to identify crossing needs and certainly able to do it if they see fit."

For reading clarity, think in this instance the "federal government" refers to Canada's federal government.

After Tuesday's ass whipping, the Dems at the Federal level are not going to try to force anything down a state's throat.

And unless Hansen Clarke is put on the same committee that Carolyn Cheeks-Kilpatrick was on, which is doubtful given the fact that he doesn't have any seniority and the Dems don't have control of the house, his only possible role may be to run plays from the sideline in the manner that Dingell did to get the Bridge Inspection report released. For all intents and purposes,the DRIC may be gone for good.

Maybe this will allow MDOT to concentrate on repairing some of those bridges and overpasses, you know, the ones that our state tax dollars are actually paying for them to fix that have about 200,000 vehicles drive over daily as opposed to the DRIC that will only see about 10,000 vehicles, that are in worst shape than the bridge that collapsed in Minnesota a few years ago.

[Sandhouse]

It was probably foolish to expect that Bishop would allow the DRIC to move in this session. By punting it into the 96th legislature, the Republicans can keep milking Matty for several hundred thousand a year for at least another two years, and maybe indefinitely. Probably the Republicans' worst nightmare is for the state, the Chamber, and Ontario to stop promoting the DRIC.

It's possible, but unlikely, that Congress or the administration would make a cause of a new Detroit bridge. They are focused entirely on the Mexican border and seem not to know that the country has a northern border that is crossed by a lot of commerce. They are not at all eager to invest money in making Michigan/Ontario traffic flow smoothly, and I see no sign that the Canadians have any leverage over Washington on this issue. Michigan's congressional delegation is probably powerless on this, too.

I see the current situation persisting until some interest outbids Matty for ownership of the Michigan legislature, which will probably happen when traffic rebounds to the point where a new bridge attracts serious investor money. In other words, a long time.

[Novine]

"Maybe this will allow MDOT to concentrate on repairing some of those bridges and overpasses, you know, the ones that our state tax dollars are actually paying for them to fix that have about 200,000 vehicles drive over daily as opposed to the DRIC that will only see about 10,000 vehicles, that are in worst shape than the bridge that collapsed in Minnesota a few years ago."

The state almost couldn't manage to get together enough money to match the federal dollars that were targeted to come to the state. I don't know what state dollars were allocated for DRIC. I believe that most of that was going to be bonded and paid for by tolls.

[kraig]

"Maybe this will allow MDOT to concentrate on repairing some of those bridges and overpasses, you know, the ones that our state tax dollars are actually paying for them to fix that have about 200,000 vehicles drive over daily as opposed to the DRIC that will only see about 10,000 vehicles, that are in worst shape than the bridge that collapsed in Minnesota a few years ago."

The state almost couldn't manage to get together enough money to match the federal dollars that were targeted to come to the state. I don't know what state dollars were allocated for DRIC. I believe that most of that was going to be bonded and paid for by tolls.

The state spent tens of millions on just the DRIC study alone. Every ten million that's been wasted on the DRIC could have been used as matching funds to bring in an additional forty million. Not to mention personnel hours being dedicated to the DRIC that could be dedicated to other projects.

Why waste money on studies when the funds could have been multiplied by five to be used on actual construction projects that MDOT knows beyond a shadow of a doubt needs to be done? That also would have brought in much needed contsruction jobs for the present.

[swingline]

It's a below grade highway, with tunnels, parks on top of the tunnels, roundabouts, the reconstruction of EC Row west, and the buy out and demolishment of buisness and homes. Then there are the retention ponds and drainage ditches thruout the west end that need to be realigned ....all kinds of stuff.

It's this much because Windsor demanded it. The federal government wanted to just give us a real quick fix that just routed shit back to the Ambassador bridge.

My latest issue of Tollroad News just arrived and included an informative article about Canada's $billion+ Parkway-to-Nowhere . http://www.tollroadsnews.com/node/4972 The Windsor folks had a glitzy press conference last week to announce the awarding of construction contracts. The Tollroad News people sense a boondoogle to say the least. Maybe they feel that way because the beautiful new parkway will be toll-free. Oh well. Anyway, the mailman just dropped off the new issue of Suspension Bridge Monthly. Let me check and see what their take is on this stuff.

[gdogslim]

Why not let Maroun build another span next to the current one with his own money?
I understand he might be a greedy slimeball but he is spending his own money not taxpayers.

[Magnatomicflux]

gdogslim - from a Windsor prespective, letting Maroun twin the bridge will do nothing to alieviate the health issues inside the city. The city is sick of having 9 kms of tractor-trailers along Huron Church idling away at a dead stop. You can't get from the curb lane to the fast lane on Huron, sometimes they block major intersections, they fill up Wyandotte st to get on the bridge, they take all these other routes thru residential areas to beat grid locked bridge traffic. It's not all the time mind you, but it does get bad...real quick when USBP tighten up for any given reason. We're gonna need one sooner or later, even if the numbers don't justify it right now, the new bridge will be attractive to investors for both our cities in the near future. This bridge and a new rail tunnel to be bult by Canadian Pacific are really going to put the Windsor-Detroit area back on track.
Plus.......we just need one somewhere else. And I don't think I would say it's a NIMBY thing, just plain old heath issues.


swingline - thanks for that link.

[jsmyers]

Canada won't let him build that bridge. I wouldn't be surprised if the majority of Windsor wanted it torn down completely.

It is completely possible that the DIBC becomes the private part of a PPP [[public-private partnership) to build DIRC. Wouldn't it be ironic?

I'd wager that the issue is 90% location and 10% who controls.

[Magnatomicflux]

Nah, I think overall everyone is fine with the Ambassador bridge alone, but certainly not two in the same spot. That's just double the traffic going down one stop light strewn corridor.
But you're right, his second span will never be built. Windsor will tie this issue up so long it won't even be worth it anymore.

[KOMPOST]

Blanchard weighs in: DRIC is far from dead.
http://www.windsorstar.com/news/gove...megadrop_story

[DetroitPole]

It was probably foolish to expect that Bishop would allow the DRIC to move in this session. By punting it into the 96th legislature, the Republicans can keep milking Matty for several hundred thousand a year for at least another two years, and maybe indefinitely. Probably the Republicans' worst nightmare is for the state, the Chamber, and Ontario to stop promoting the DRIC.

It's possible, but unlikely, that Congress or the administration would make a cause of a new Detroit bridge. They are focused entirely on the Mexican border and seem not to know that the country has a northern border that is crossed by a lot of commerce. They are not at all eager to invest money in making Michigan/Ontario traffic flow smoothly, and I see no sign that the Canadians have any leverage over Washington on this issue. Michigan's congressional delegation is probably powerless on this, too.

I see the current situation persisting until some interest outbids Matty for ownership of the Michigan legislature, which will probably happen when traffic rebounds to the point where a new bridge attracts serious investor money. In other words, a long time.

My prediction:

Matty will keep throwing his money at Republicans and doing things he shouldn't be doing, like closing public streets and building gas stations on land he doesn't own.

The Canadians won't budge. They want the DRIC.

The Legislature will vacillate and waffle about nothing indefinitely about the DRIC.

The Candians won't budge. They still want the DRIC.

Another span will be built in a different city like Buffalo and Michigan will continue to be an ineffectual piece of garbage.

The end.

Something similar will happen with light rail too.

[bailey]

My prediction:

Matty will keep throwing his money at Republicans and doing things he shouldn't be doing, like closing public streets and building gas stations on land he doesn't own.

The Canadians won't budge. They want the DRIC.

The Legislature will vacillate and waffle about nothing indefinitely about the DRIC.

The Candians won't budge. They still want the DRIC.

Another span will be built in a different city like Buffalo and Michigan will continue to be an ineffectual piece of garbage.

The end.

Something similar will happen with light rail too.

+1. Could we just cut to the announcement of the span being built in Buffalo and save ourselves 10 years of discussion?

[kraig]

Blanchard weighs in: DRIC is far from dead.
http://www.windsorstar.com/news/gove...megadrop_story

As much as he's being paid to lobby, Blanchard is hardly objective on the matter. Like any other rainmaker, the longer this drags on, the more money he makes.