Letter: You can’t compare the Mid-States Corridor to past highways

I read with great interest Mr. Doug Bawel’s letter with regards to the Mid-States Corridor. I was struck by his statements about forward thinkers and naysayers. I would have expected nothing less from a donor to the Mid-States Corridor RDA.

US 231 is not a new highway as Mr. Bawels alluded. It was on the original mid-1920’s Joint Board on Interstate Highways to organize major interstate routes with a logical numbering scheme. Jasper and Huntingburg have been connected since their beginnings by trails and dirt roads. SR-64 was the first paved highway, then US-231 became the main connection in the 1940’s. I-64 was listed on the original Interstate Highway Act of 1954, as were I-69, I-65, I-70 and all the rest of Indiana’s Interstate highways. Do not be fooled that these are recent or even equivalent to the Mid-States Corridor, nor were they envisioned by local forward thinkers.

The blunt truth is from a strict transportation and economic analysis, the Mid-States Corridor does not meet the usual thresholds for a new 4-lane expressway. The traffic volumes, in the area, are moderate and are not heavy enough to require a divided highway. The truck/freight patterns are limited and could use the existing 4-lane Interstate highways via short east-west connectors. The crash rates and travel-time savings are minimal. And, the regional economic benefits are speculative and are not guaranteed. Therefore, the decision to push the project is driven by political and regional advocacy priorities rather than by demonstrated transportation needs.

In other words the Mid-States Corridor project is purely a policy choice framed as an infrastructure need and not a data-driven project. It’s primarily a political initiative and is not and cannot be justified by hard traffic, safety or freight data. It’s about creating a symbolic infrastructure investment, a response to local political pressure and imaginary economic growth.

Who will really benefit from the Mid-States Corridor? Obviously, Mike Braun, Mark Messmer, Hank Menke, Ken Mulzer and Mark Schroeder will. They will gain visibility and political capital. Local construction (Ken Mulzer), engineering (Lochmueller Group) and some industries (Hank Menke, Doug Bawels) will gain contracts and some logistical convenience.

The losers will be the local taxpayers and citizens. They will have to bear the burden of higher taxes to maintain the local roads, will suffer from the lack of social services due to increased road expenses and a lack of funds. The local truck traffic will not decrease and commuters will not save any time.

The public has spoken and they are opposed to Mid-States Corridor. If our elected officials chose ignore the will of the people they do so at their peril. The people of Dubois and Martin County, in particular, are opposed and are vocal in their opposition; and, should not be dismissed.

I urge everyone to oppose the Mid-States Corridor. Stand up and stand alongside the PRA in opposition. Once again we must deny the “machine” any and all progress in it’s quest to force the Corridor upon us. Do not allow anyone onto your land unless they comply 100% with the law and Judge Verkamp’s rulings. Do not listen to their offers to “just procure a right of way”. Disregard their attempts to contact you via phone, e-mail, snail mail or in person. If you have a concern about the legality of your actions, attend a PRA meeting.

Remember, we can fight city hall and we can win.

Jim Arvin
Rutherford Township
Martin County

To clarify, this is not Mr. Jim Arvin of Jasper, the former CEO of Jasper Desk