Published: May 13, 2009 11:46 pm      

Route 219 organization wants PennDOT to get out of first gear

SOMERSET — The takeaway from a Continental 1 meeting Wednesday was much the same as it has been for years: Completion of Route 219 has plenty of local support but needs government funding.

Meg Lauerman, project manager for Continental 1, said, “New York DOT (Department of Transportation) is very supportive. We don’t have that PennDOT support.’’

Buffalo, N.Y.-based Continental 1 is a public/private partnership to create a four-lane trade corridor from Toronto to Miami. Route 219 in New York and Pennsylvania is a key aspect of the project but remains to be completed.

Continental 1 also will hook up with other highways, including Interstate 95.

Lauerman addressed about 20 people interested in the highway’s completion. They included county commissioners from Somerset and Cambria counties, representatives of the area’s state senators, Somerset Borough Manager Ben Vinzani and transit officials.

Lauerman expressed impatience with the pace.

“It has to be done more effectively than four miles per career,” she said. “We have to re-energize the support that has been there for 50 years but has never come through.”

Chris Allison of the Southern Alleghenies Planning and Development Commission noted that widening 219 from Somerset to Meyersdale is in the design stage.

But, he added, another $35 million is needed from the state for the construction itself. The federal government has pledged its 80 percent share of the $365 million construction, and Allison expects that cash to stay put.

David Moe of Garrett County, Md., said it would be wise for Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation to push for a change in the federal funding formula.