Miss Palin, my new favorite politician has begun her trial by fire as the DNC and their confederates begin to do everything in their power to discredit her. Unlike some of my associates here I do not give my person a free pass but nor do I expect perfection from my candidate just to do their best for their constituency.
One of the few issues so far that even approaches relevance is the bridge to nowhere. Gov Palin, as Governor of the state was involved with it on some level. How people interpret that involvement bears discussion. Some links to get us started.
http://www.iht.com/articles/20...n.php
http://www.taxpayer.net/projec...=1175
Spare me the bizarre sources please. Let's keep links and source data to mainstream passably objective sources. I will just get rid of inflammatory BS from "bob for obama blog" or McCain fin rules bishes" type sites that make outlandish, unsupported, slanted claims one way or the other.If you make a claim better be ready to back it up with hard objective facts from a reliable source or don't waste the time posting.
The bridge to nowhere, discuss
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themadscientist
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Qwerty1942
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Re: The bridge to nowhere, discuss (themadscientist)
Gravina Island BridgeFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, search
The Gravina Island Bridge was proposed to replace the ferry that currently connects Ketchikan, Alaska, to the Ketchikan International Airport on Gravina Island. The bridge was projected to cost $398 million. Members of the Alaskan congressional delegation, particularly Rep. Don Young and Sen. Ted Stevens, were the bridge's biggest advocates in Congress and helped push for federal funding.[1] Governor Sarah Palin also supported the project, but canceled the bridge when the Alaska delegation was unable to prevent changes to federal funding levels that more than doubled Alaska's portion of the bill from $160M (40%) to $329M (82%) of the bridge's cost.[2]
[edit] History
According to the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities, the project's goal was to "provide better service to the airport and allow for development of large tracts of land on the island.[3] The project encountered fierce opposition outside of Alaska as a symbol of pork barrel spending and was widely labeled "the bridge to nowhere." [4]
A ferry runs to the island every 30 minutes during most of the year, except during the May–September peak tourist season when it runs every 15 minutes. It charges $5 per adult, with free same-day return, and $6 per automobile each way (as of 2008).[5]
According to USA Today, the bridge was to have been nearly as long as the Golden Gate Bridge and taller than the Brooklyn Bridge.[6] The bridge would cross the Tongass Narrows, part of the Alaska's Inside Passage, so the bridge was designed to be tall enough to accommodate ship traffic, including the Alaska Marine Highway and the cruise ships which frequent Alaskan waters during the summer.
Statistics show that Ketchikan's airport is the second largest in Southeast Alaska after Juneau International Airport, handling over 200,000 passengers a year, while the ferry shuttles approximately a half million people in the same time period (as of December 2006).[7] The Golden Gate Bridge carried an average of 118,000 vehicles each day in 2006.[8]
In October 2005, Republican Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska became the object of strong media criticism when he opposed diverting the Gravina and Knik Arm Bridge funds to help aid recovery from Hurricane Katrina.[9] In his speech on the Senate floor, Stevens threatened to quit Congress if the funds were removed from his state.[10]
Congress dropped the specific allocation for the two bridges, but the amount of money appropriated to Alaska remained unchanged.[11] In August 2007, Alaska's DOT stated that it was "leaning" toward alternative ferry options, citing bridge costs, despite having already received the funds from the federal government.[12] The project was canceled in 2007.
The city of Ketchikan has already begun to develop roads and a small amount of infrastructure for the island's fifty (2000 census) inhabitants. However, residents continue to seek funding for the Gravina Island span.[13]
Ketchikan desires a better way to reach the airport, but the $398 million bridge is not the answer. Despite the work of our congressional delegation, we are about $329 million short of full funding for the bridge project, and it’s clear that Congress has little interest in spending any more money on a bridge between Ketchikan and Gravina Island. Much of the public’s attitude toward Alaska bridges is based on inaccurate portrayals of the projects here. But we need to focus on what we can do, rather than fight over what has happened.[14]
The Gravina Island Bridge was proposed to replace the ferry that currently connects Ketchikan, Alaska, to the Ketchikan International Airport on Gravina Island. The bridge was projected to cost $398 million. Members of the Alaskan congressional delegation, particularly Rep. Don Young and Sen. Ted Stevens, were the bridge's biggest advocates in Congress and helped push for federal funding.[1] Governor Sarah Palin also supported the project, but canceled the bridge when the Alaska delegation was unable to prevent changes to federal funding levels that more than doubled Alaska's portion of the bill from $160M (40%) to $329M (82%) of the bridge's cost.[2]
[edit] History
According to the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities, the project's goal was to "provide better service to the airport and allow for development of large tracts of land on the island.[3] The project encountered fierce opposition outside of Alaska as a symbol of pork barrel spending and was widely labeled "the bridge to nowhere." [4]
A ferry runs to the island every 30 minutes during most of the year, except during the May–September peak tourist season when it runs every 15 minutes. It charges $5 per adult, with free same-day return, and $6 per automobile each way (as of 2008).[5]
According to USA Today, the bridge was to have been nearly as long as the Golden Gate Bridge and taller than the Brooklyn Bridge.[6] The bridge would cross the Tongass Narrows, part of the Alaska's Inside Passage, so the bridge was designed to be tall enough to accommodate ship traffic, including the Alaska Marine Highway and the cruise ships which frequent Alaskan waters during the summer.
Statistics show that Ketchikan's airport is the second largest in Southeast Alaska after Juneau International Airport, handling over 200,000 passengers a year, while the ferry shuttles approximately a half million people in the same time period (as of December 2006).[7] The Golden Gate Bridge carried an average of 118,000 vehicles each day in 2006.[8]
In October 2005, Republican Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska became the object of strong media criticism when he opposed diverting the Gravina and Knik Arm Bridge funds to help aid recovery from Hurricane Katrina.[9] In his speech on the Senate floor, Stevens threatened to quit Congress if the funds were removed from his state.[10]
Congress dropped the specific allocation for the two bridges, but the amount of money appropriated to Alaska remained unchanged.[11] In August 2007, Alaska's DOT stated that it was "leaning" toward alternative ferry options, citing bridge costs, despite having already received the funds from the federal government.[12] The project was canceled in 2007.
The city of Ketchikan has already begun to develop roads and a small amount of infrastructure for the island's fifty (2000 census) inhabitants. However, residents continue to seek funding for the Gravina Island span.[13]
Ketchikan desires a better way to reach the airport, but the $398 million bridge is not the answer. Despite the work of our congressional delegation, we are about $329 million short of full funding for the bridge project, and it’s clear that Congress has little interest in spending any more money on a bridge between Ketchikan and Gravina Island. Much of the public’s attitude toward Alaska bridges is based on inaccurate portrayals of the projects here. But we need to focus on what we can do, rather than fight over what has happened.[14]
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themadscientist
- Posts: 26254
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Re: The bridge to nowhere, discuss (Qwerty1942)
wiki is suspect, always suspect. Anybody can edit a wiki entry. The facts are out there though so it could be checked against secondary sources if need be.