Thank you, Bob. It's great to be here.
Let me start off by saying that this association is very fortunate to have Bob as President.
During his tenure on the Board of Transportation, he never lost sight of his commitment to U.S. 17 and it's very clear that his passion continues to this day.
He is succeeded on the Board by Cam McRae, who shares Bob's dedication to transportation in eastern North Carolina.
I'd like to take this opportunity to recognize both of them-Cam and Bob, will you stand please?
(McRAE AND MATTOCKS STAND. YOU LEAD APPLAUSE.)
No doubt about it-this region is made stronger by the talents of these two leaders.
My remarks today are going to be brief because I want to focus on the reason you asked me here-how my agenda will help the department move forward with projects like U.S. 17.
We're not here today to talk about the past; as you all know, this is long gone.
Starting today, I'd like to ask you to join me in looking to the future-and you'll be glad to know that there is much reason for optimism.
As Secretary of Transportation, it's my job to help Governor Easley fulfill his vision for One North Carolina.
And in my mind, there can be no greater illustration of this vision than a safe, well-maintained and integrated transportation system for all North Carolinians.
Like Bob, I was a Board Member in eastern North Carolina for 8 years, so I am particularly sensitive to the difficulties faced by highway construction in these areas.
I met with the Executive Committee earlier this year, at which time I learned the depth of your frustration.
Your impatience is understandable; believe me, I have been in your shoes.
As a result of my years on the Board and my extensive business experience, I also know that we have the power to change things.
That's why my agenda is built on progress.
And before we move to the subject of U.S. 17 specifically, I'd like to highlight some of our accomplishments.
From improving planning to streamlining our environmental process to expanding public involvement opportunities, I've got a lot of good news to share.
I take great pride in a recent accomplishment-increased maintenance funding.
Our state's budget shortfall has made meeting our maintenance needs particularly challenging.
However, as part of the budget bill, the General Assembly passed a special provision allowing the department to use a portion of its cash balances-about $420 million-for maintenance during the next three years.
We applaud the General Assembly's support and passage of this landmark legislation, which is the most significant transportation legislation since the Highway Trust Fund in 1989.
Last week at our November Board meeting, the Board approved $65 million worth of projects that will begin as soon as weather permits.
We expect another $88 million to be approved in December.
In the first year alone we will improve more than 400 miles of highways.
In this region, you'll be pleased to know that we'll be improving more than 30 miles of U.S. 70 through Lenoir, Jones and Craven counties.
Let me put in perspective for you how important this legislation is.
Under our current funding system, it might be 10-20 years before some of these roads would ever be resurfaced.
In fact, some of these projects would not have been completed for many generations.
Because there are two more years left in the program-$135 million in both the second and third years, we expect to improve many more areas across the state.
Contracts for maintenance projects for the second year will be let in 2002 and, for the third year, in 2003.
As part of this legislation, the department would also be able to use additional funds during the next three years as follows:
Another one of my goals has been to expand transportation infrastructure in our rural areas-and again, we've made great progress.
As a native of a small town in Johnston County, I have always been a champion of our rural areas.
Rural North Carolina has played an important role in our state and our nation's heritage.
In fact, it was the farm roads that helped build our state by moving goods to the marketplace.
There's no reason why our farm roads shouldn't continue this tradition and become the spokes in the economic development wheel.
Based on the vibrant history of our rural regions, I know that their potential is unlimited.
That's why, throughout my association with the Department, I have been committed to helping build a strong future for these areas.
With this aim, we have been working on the development of rural transportation planning organizations-or RPOs-across the state.
On Sept. 26, we announced a new RPO for the Mid-Carolina region, representing Bladen, Cumberland, Harnett and Sampson counties
RPOs are voluntary organizations composed of local elected officials and local transportation system representatives that will serve in an advisory role for the department.
They will help the department develop long-range local and regional multi-modal transportation plans.
RPOs will also develop and prioritize suggestions for transportation projects to be included in the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP).
In addition to expanded participation from citizens in our rural areas, there are many other opportunities for public involvement.
Our Public Involvement & Community Studies Unit conducts more than 100 project-related public hearings each year, including information workshops and public hearings.
Citizens are also encouraged to help shape the future of their communities by participating in the development of the TIP.
We're currently developing the draft document for the next plan, the 2004-2010 TIP and we're asking for project recommendations to be included in this plan.
We've got a number of TIP meetings coming up in this region.
Another important focus area for me has been the environment.
Because I grew up in a small town in the eastern part of the state, I have always had a special appreciation for our state's natural resources.
However, as I said during my swearing-in, I do believe that it is possible to have a healthy environment and a quality transportation system at the same time.
That's why I've been concentrating much of my attention on improving our environmental permitting process-not just for the sake of reducing transportation project delivery time but also in an effort to expand protection of these resources.
Although we are making progress on widening projects along U.S. 17 in the north and in the south, the widening of the middle-particularly from Maysville to New Bern-has been much slower than we would like.
Progress has been hampered by a number of issues, including planning, environmental and local government issues.
And in my view, the best way to attack these issues is to combine them.
That's why, not long after my appointment as Secretary, I developed the department's first position of Deputy Secretary for Planning, the Environment and Local Government Affairs.
Roger's vast experience in local government and his talent for building consensus made him the perfect match for this position.
In a moment, I'll call on Roger for an update on this project-and to share with you more about what he has been doing to resolve some of the issues associated with U.S. 17.
First, I'd like to summarize more of the department's accomplishments in environmental streamlining.
You'll hear the term "environmental streamlining" a lot today.
What is it means is simply taking a hard look at our existing environmental process and finding ways to make it more efficient.
In March, for example, we established the Board of Transportation's first Environmental Planning and Policy Committee to help integrate an environmental ethic into all DOT work.
In June, DENR Secretary William Ross and I signed an agreement signifying a shared responsibility to meet the state's transportation needs and protect the state's environment.
DENR has agreed to help us minimize impacts of highway construction by providing DOT with more information about critical land conservation areas.
We have agreed to involve DENR earlier in the environmental planning stages for transportation improvements to help avoid delays in the permitting process.
This agreement was very important because finding and locating stream mitigation projects is probably one of our greatest challenges in meeting transportation needs in this area.
Currently, we are working with DENR staff to develop a long-term solution to this issue.
Improved communication is just one part of our environmental streamlining efforts.
We're also in the process of developing a linear referencing system that will help us identify and resolve impacts upon both the natural and human environment much earlier than before.
In addition to identifying wetlands and streams, we'll also be identifying historic landmarks, through a partnership with the Department of Cultural Resources.
For the first time in the history of the department, we'll have a system that identifies these landmarks in advance-which means that we'll be able to better avoid them in the future.
But our work doesn't end on the state level.
We have taken our commitment to environmental streamlining one step better-to the national level.
As part of our streamlining efforts, we have been working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to address our environmental issues at the highest level possible.
As a matter of fact, our streamlining efforts were recently selected as a national pilot for departments of transportation in the southern United States.
We hope that other departments facing the same challenges will learn from our experience and that delays on projects like U.S. 17 in the future will either be reduced or eliminated.
Before I ask Roger to speak, I want to reiterate my commitment to this important corridor.
You have my personal word that my dedication will endure until this highway is four-laned from end-to-end.
On this note, I'll ask Roger to share with you more about what we have been doing to make this happen.
(ROGER MAKES REMARKS. FOLLOWING HIS REMARKS, THERE WILL BE A BRIEF QUESTION AND ANSWER PERIOD.)