November 8, 2006
Deb Miller, Secretary of Transportation
Kansas Department of Transportation
Dwight D. Eisenhower State Office Building
700 SW Harrison Street
Topeka, KS 66603-3754
Dear Secretary Miller:
As the Kansas Comprehensive Transportation Program (CTP) comes to an end, the City of Lawrence appreciates and has made good use of the support provided by this program. However, with the current CTP expiring in 2009, we are concerned that a new program has not yet been approved. The City has many transportation infrastructure needs that cannot be completed without state and federal assistance. As an established community, Lawrence does rely on state funding to provide funding for the necessary repairs, maintenance, and reconstruction of an aging transportation network. Additionally, as a growing community the city relies on state funding to provide transportation system enhancements which help stimulate the local economy.
In the area of future needs for our transit system, constructing a new Bus Maintenance/Administration facility for a coordinated transit system is in Lawrence’s best interest, due to inadequacies in our current arrangement. Another on-going long-term capital need is for bus acquisition and replacement. As Lawrence continues to grow, the City will need to acquire more buses to serve new areas and improve the level of service to increase service frequency and coverage. This last area of improvement will become more of an issue if coordination efforts with the University of Kansas are successful.
As the Lawrence Municipal Airport continues to attract aviation traffic, pavement maintenance and improved safety conditions remain at the forefront of our capital improvement plans. As a member of the Kansas Association of Airports (KAA), Lawrence supports efforts by the State that promotes, improves, and maintains our airport system in Kansas.
Capacity, safety and multimodal (pedestrian, bicycle, transit, aviation) programs help to make our City a desirable community for families and businesses to locate. To that end, the attached is only a partial list of transportation projects necessary to continue our commitment to our citizens to provide excellent city services that enhance the quality of life for the Lawrence community.
Sincerely,
Charles F. Soules, P.E.
Director of Public Works
CFS/je
cc: Mayor and City Commissioners
Dave Corliss, City Manager
Debbie Van Saun, Asst. City Manager
Jerry Younger, Assistant Secretary & State Transportation Engineer
Dan Scherschligt, District Engineer
Earl Bozak, Area Engineer
Jerry Younger
Assistant Secretary & State Transportation Engineer
Kansas Department of Transportation
Dwight D. Eisenhower State Office Building
700 SW Harrison Street
Topeka, KS 66603-3754
Dan Scherschligt, District Engineer
Kansas Department of Transportation
121 W. 21st Street
P.O. Box 5128
Topeka, KS 66605-0128
Earl Bozak, Area Engineer
Kansas Department of Transportation
322 S. Martin
P.O. Box 212
Osage City, KS 66523-0212