Everyone knows that getting any project, much less a major infrastructure project, from the initial stages through to approval is an extensive and complicated task. As the Connector moves forward, I’d like to highlight a few aspects of the process.

One of my recent entries focused on personal movement. This time, I’d like to share information about how the Connector can provide another form of freedom: goods movement.

Our society practically dictates a high standard of living. People want the best of everything, but they also want a bargain. There are many ways companies can provide us with goods at reasonable prices—use “lean” manufacturing, reduce advertising costs, and use efficient transportation to get goods into our hands.

The weather is heating up and so are we! The Connector team, which includes me, our engineering team, environmental team and public outreach team, has been getting out of the office and talking with various business and community groups over the past couple of months. We want to share information and answer questions so everyone who is interested in the project can participate in the process.

Most people hear “sustainable” and “roadway” and think there’s no way the two go together – how is it possible to build a sustainable roadway? Sustainable roadways are a newer concept and a developing field of engineering and construction that has resulted from a general agreement that roadways by themselves, as traffic facilitators, are greenhouse gas generators.

Now, that’s not to say that the Connector will be a roadway that does not produce greenhouse gas: that would be nearly impossible with current technologies. But there are many things we can do when designing and building the Connector to be sustainable.