Nation's Road And Bridge System Plays Critical Role In The Aftermath Of 9/11

Friday, March 1, 2002

Nation’s Road And Bridge System PlaysCritical Role In The Aftermath Of 9/11 (NAPSA)—When our nation’s air system was shut down as a result of the attacks by terrorists on Sept. 11, it underscored the critical role our highway system plays in the daily lives of citizens, the country’s economy and in national defense. “The shutdown of the air system could have led to a major disruption in our economy, but needed products and materials, including mail, that usually were delivered by air arrived at their destinations by road instead,” said William M. Wilkins, executive director of The Road Information Program (TRIP), a nonprofit transportation research group based in Washington, D.C. “During this critical period, it was very important for us to keep people and commerce moving,” he added. All of a sudden, there was a need for emergency rescue services to be moved quickly to the affected areas. The immediaterescue response to the tragic events required emergency vehicles, personnel and equipmentto arrive on the scene. Heavy construction equipment was needed at the scene to remove debris and help in the search for survivors. At the same time, there was a need for people near the scene to move quickly and out of harm’s way. In the days afterward, when people had to get home, vehicles were rented and borrowed. Goods and services that normally were delivered by air now were being transported on roads. Needed mail delivery, freight, products and services all were now primarily dependent on our nation’s road system. Wilkins also pointed out that the nation’s road and bridge system also is playing a key role in providing the mobility needed for our military to assure homeland security. In fact, our interstate sys- tem wasinitially built as a way of providing for our national defense. “The ability of our nation to quickly move military equipment, supplies and troops across our country is without question an integral part of providing homeland security,” Wilkinssaid. On the eve of World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt recommended that Congress fund a highway system “designed to meet the requirements of the national defense and the needs of a growing peacetimetraffic.” Later, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower and other key political figures were advocating the need for the nation to build a system of interstate highways in the 1950s, the chief reason they wanted it built was to help secure the national defense at a time when the Cold War was a threat to homelandsecurity. “President Eisenhower recognized the role an efficient road and bridge system plays in providing mobility for our nation’s mili- tary, and the events of Sept. 11 have again emphasized thecritical role transportation plays in national defense,” Wilkinssaid. That is why the official name for our interstates is the “Dwight D. Eisenhower System of Interstate and Defense Highways.” Therole transportation plays in homelandsecurity is why the U.S. Department of Transportation established a new Transportation Security Administration, and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) has set up a Task Force on Transportation Security. Wilkins pointed out that our nation’s ability to evacuate an area during times of emergency is dependent upon our ability to provide a sufficient network of roads that can enable people and vehicles to move quickly duringa crisis. “As our nation prepares to address possible threats to our homeland security, it is essential that we make sure that we have a transportation system that pro- vides the military and the public with needed mobility in times of crisis. We need to make sure in the years ahead that the mobility provided by our road and bridge system does not break down because of our inability to effectively relieve traffic congestion,” he concluded.