We need your help to put the I-3 proposal where it belongs—into a permanent coma. You can help us in three specific ways in the next few weeks:

First, if you haven’t already told the Federal Highway Administration your opinion about I-3, do that now. The contractor will be submitting its final report to the FHWA in mid-June, and FHWA will be forwarding it to Congress soon after, so we need you to contact them by next Friday, June 3, to ensure your voice is heard. Let them know that you don’t want I-3 built and that they shouldn’t continue to waste money with additional “optional sub-studies.” (See below for more details on these and other arguments you can make.) Submit your comments:

Online at http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/section_1927/3rd_infantry_highway/feedback.cfm

and

By email to stefan.natzke@dot.gov

Second, when this study is completed, nearly $1 million of the original $1.32 million earmark of federal funding will remain in the kitty. Those funds can’t be used for any other purpose unless legislation is passed rescinding the earmark. And the I-3 earmark isn’t the only one that hasn’t been fully spent. That’s why we want Congress, when it looks at a new transportation funding bill this year, to do a comprehensive review of I-3 and other old highway earmarks and clean them up. Please write or email your members of Congress and let them know you support returning these unused earmarks to the Treasury where they can start doing some good. We’ve provided some sample language here, but please personalize the letter yourself. If you don’t know how to reach your Representative and Senators, check here.

Finally, as always, thanks for caring about responsible transportation in the southern Appalachians. Your support makes our work possible. As we reach the final stages of Phase I of the I-3 study, please consider making a donation to help us keep the momentum through the next steps.

Best regards,

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Jim Grode
Executive Director
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• There is no transportation, economic, or other need for the proposed highway, which is no shorter than existing routes.
• The proposed route, known as Corridor A (click here for a map showing Corridor A in deep blue), would have devastating effects on the cultural heritage of northwest Georgia and eastern Tennessee, and would negatively affect air and water quality in the area, as well as increasing pressures on the Chattahoochee National Forest.
• The study has shown that, with a price tag of up to $6.1 billion, I-3 is cost-prohibitive. Particularly in light of the lack of any benefit and the damage it would cause, there is no reason to consider it any further.
• Now that the congressional requirement to study “the steps and estimated funding necessary” to build a highway has been completed, nearly $1 million of the original federal earmark of $1.32 million remains unspent. Rather than being wasted on further “optional sub-studies” that will only confirm what we already know—that I-3 shouldn’t go any further—this money should be returned to the Treasury where it can be put to a useful purpose.
• If Congress feels the need to honor the Third Infantry Division through a road project, it should authorize the “no-build option” consisting of signage along an existing route, which would cost less than $500,000.