Some say it will bring more income, others fear for farmland.
By ROBERT HENLEY and CYNTHIA CIELUCH of Southwest Texas State University
For industrialists in Mexico's northern manufacturing capital of Monterrey, the $7.2 billion extension of Interstate 69 will open markets all over the United States and Canada.
For entrepreneurs in Montreal, it means expansion of trade routes in search of new consumers created by the North American Free Trade Agreement.
For folks in Evansville, Ind., I-69 means a long-sought direct route to Indianapolis.
If completed, the I-69 corridor would stretch from Laredo, Texas, to Port Huron, Mich., providing a transportation strip servicing major industrial and production areas in Mexico and Canada.
Nowhere on the proposed intercontinental route has debate been more intense than along the strip between Evansville and Bloomington, Ind.
A new 141-mile highway linking Evansville to Indianapolis is estimated to cost $1.4 billion, of which Indiana would be responsible for about $200 million and the federal government would pay the rest.
Last year, Congress passed a highway bill through 2005 that would provide $30 million to $35 million for the I-69 project. Indiana has already received about $30 million for it but none for the Indianapolis-Evansville link.
Advocates say the extension of I-69 would spur economic growth for southwestern Indiana and provide a corridor for goods traveling along the NAFTA highway. Opponents say it will destroy thousands of acres of farmland and wilderness at a monetary cost beyond its value to industry and commerce.
Describing the territory as "the largest free-trade zone in the world," leaders of the I-69 initiative say 40 percent of U.S. manufacturing takes place in the 10 states in or adjacent to the I-69 corridor, an alignment that demands an interstate-quality highway.
Triangular travels
A direct route from Evansville to Indianapolis is crucial to people who live in the area. James Newland, executive director for the Mid-Continent Highway Coalition, says the 12 counties of southwestern Indiana have "endured a long and painful history as Indiana transportation stepchildren."
Travelers between Evansville and Indianapolis must take U.S. 41 north to Terre Haute, then Interstate 70 east to Indianapolis.
"The shortest distance between two points is not a triangle," Newland said.
Highway boosters are also vocal about potential economic windfalls. Newland, who previously worked with a contractors' trade association, said the road is expected to create 14,000 jobs and add about $3 billion to the gross state product.
Opponents say each job would cost more than $1.5 million. The estimate is based on a study released recently by the University of Illinois at Chicago. Citizens for Appropriate Rural Roads and the Environmental Law and Policy Center of the Midwest paid for the study.
"This study confirms that I-69 is an extraordinarily poor investment of our tax dollars," said Thomas Tokarski, president of Citizens for Appropriate Rural Roads. "INDOT claims that I-69 is designed to create jobs in rural southwest Indiana. Given the absurdly high cost of the few jobs it would create, I-69 simply cannot be justified as a rural economic development tool."
John Schwartz, executive director of the Voices for I-69, said the extension would provide "links to industry" for cities not along the route. Schwartz also disputed as not viable an option to upgrade the 41-70 route for NAFTA traffic.
That wouldn't produce economically, he said, calling it "no option in Indiana" because "it doesn't help one quarter of our state."
Numbers game
Both sides in the dispute are using numbers to state their cases, and defenders of the extension are estimating its value in terms of life and death as well as dollars.
In a news release, for example, Voices for I-69 claims traffic in Indiana increased 58 percent from 1983 to 1995, despite a population rise of only 6 percent during the same period. The group asserts that building the highway will reduce by 50 percent the vehicular fatality rate, which stood at 2,692 in the 25 years between 1972 and 1997.
A study cited in promotional brochures produced by the Mid-Continent Highway Coalition shows that based on an average annual U.S. wage of $25,000, such a reduction in fatalities would generate $150 million in income for the spared drivers.
Opponents of the extension remain skeptical, citing their own data to argue for the 41-70 option or no option at all.
Environmentalists contend it would destroy forest and farmland and disrupt wetlands. Others say an extended I-69 could threaten the Amish way of life. Indiana Department of Transportation figures confirm that about 3,000 acres of farmland and 1,000 acres of forest will have to make way.
Newland calls those losses "minuscule," and Schwartz believes they're "insignificant" in the context that Indiana currently loses about 89,000 acres of agricultural land per year.
Concerns have been voiced about the fact that some Amish farms will be split by the highway extension. It is possible that some farmers could have to go to extra trouble to reach lands that are now easily accessible.
Newland said farms would be split, creating some difficulty in access, but he is confident the issue "can and will be addressed." He also noted that some of the Amish are "very supportive of this road."
Possible backfire?
Besides environmental and social concerns, some detractors are worried that I-69 will, in some places, have the opposite of its intended effect.
Andy Knott of the Hoosier Environmental Council says some counties along the 41-70 route are economically worse off than those along I-69. He fears the extension would compound problems by diverting traffic from already poor communities.
Knott says a new terrain highway between Evansville and Indianapolis would cost roughly $1.41 billion, while a 41-70 upgrade would run in the neighborhood of $504 million.
Proponents of the extension have some heavy hitters on their side: Gov. Frank O'Bannon, Lt. Gov. Joe Kernan and U.S. Rep. John Hostettler, R-8th District. Hostettler, in fact, has been quoted in promotional literature, stating in one brochure:
"I believe the entire project will pay for itself and create a surplus. Cost/benefit ratio confirms I-69 is the key to strong economic development in southwest Indiana. Where else can government get an investment that has a 40 percent return?"
The proponents have another powerful ally in the Indiana Department of Transportation. INDOT engineer Steve Cecil said the highway would be a backbone for part of the state and it "fits the purpose and need of our study."
