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Martinsville, Virginia 24115
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Wednesday, January 27, 2010
By GINNY WRAY - Bulletin Staff Writer
The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has dismissed the appeal of Virginians for Appropriate Roads over construction of Interstate 73.
The court’s order was filed Monday.
The appeal was of U.S. District Senior Judge James C. Turk’s ruling in July against Virginians for Appropriate Roads, which sued federal and state highway and transportation officials.
The citizens group challenged the Federal Highway Administration’s Record of Decision on March 30, 2007, approving construction of I-73 between Interstate 81 near Roanoke and the Virginia/North Carolina state line.
The suit claimed that the highway administration violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by not adequately considering alternatives to the approved corridor, including an upgrade of U.S. 220; not postponing environmental impact statement until construction funds for I-73 were available; and not considering the environmental impacts of the interstate project, according to court records.
In July, the court determined that the highway administration’s consideration of alternative designs for the project was “reasonable and thorough and complied with NEPA’s requirements,” court records state.
The court also disagreed that the environmental impact statement should have been delayed until construction funds are available.
Heidi Underwood of the Virginia Department of Transportation said at the time that the court’s ruling “allows us to work with the FHWA (Federal Highway Administration) as we would on any other project. ... Prior to the judge’s ruling, that had stopped.”
In December, the Commonwealth Transportation Board directed the Virginia Department of Transportation to work with the Federal Highway Administration to do the necessary studies to consider shifting the route of I-73 in Henry County. The results of the study are to be brought to the CTB so it can consider shifting the project.
On Tuesday, Underwood and Jason Bond of VDOT said they are working with the FHWA to determine what level of environmental document is needed to consider the alternate alignment for I-73 to meet the CTB’s directive. Neither knew when they would hear from the FHWA.
While the dismissal of the appeal means an end to that lawsuit, there still is little money to begin work on I-73, Underwood and Bond agreed.
According to previous reports, about $13.3 million in federal and state funds have been reserved for I-73. The total construction cost for the interstate’s entire route through southwest Virginia, from Roanoke to the North Carolina line, is estimated at $4 billion.
That includes preliminary work as well as the actual construction. |
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