Meadville Tribune
Thursday, November 13, 2014
Conneaut Lake Borough will receive nearly a half million dollars for one of 56 projects totaling $33 million in federal funds to improve transportation alternatives, PennDOT Secretary Barry J. Schoch recently announced.
Conneaut Lake Borough expects to receive $400,000 worth of these grant funds to support its ongoing restoration, according to Bill Eldridge, borough council member and chairman of the Conneaut Lake Community Development Committee.
“This latest grant represents a significant milestone in that we have now received a total of $3.25 million in funding from all sources putting us at approximately 50 (percent) of our Phase One goal of $6.6 million,” he said. “We continue to seek other grant funding opportunities for Conneaut Lake revitalization.”
The $400,000 grant will fund improvements along Water Street between First and Second streets for crosswalks, concrete sidewalks, concrete driveways with curb cuts, pedestrian accessibility ramps, lighting and relocation of utilities, Eldridge said.
Transportation alternative projects enhance pedestrian and bicycle facilities, improve access to public transportation, create safe routes to school, preserve historic transportation structures, provide environmental mitigation, create trails that serve a transportation purpose, and promote safety and mobility.
“These awards represent yet another way PennDOT (the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation) is working to broaden the reach of transportation investments in Pennsylvania,” Schoch said. “Combined with awards from the new state Multimodal Fund and the Transportation Infrastructure Investment Fund, this program opens the door to an even wider variety of improvements for the people of Pennsylvania.”
Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century, the 2012 federal transportation authorization act known as MAP-21, introduced fundamental changes to the administration of local programs, including those that had existed as separate programs in SAFETEALU, the previous authorization act. Transportation Enhancements, Safe Routes to School, Scenic Byways and the Recreational Trails Program are now consolidated into the Transportation Alternative Program.