Agenda to create many new transportation jobs in Connecticut
Posted on June 1, 2015
A new historic agreement is leading to billions in transportation investment and many new transportation jobs in Connecticut.
The budget agreement reached with the House and Senate last night will fund the historic transportation agenda put forth by Governor Malloy earlier this year.
This budget, which responsibly keeps growth under 4%, will allow Connecticut to take important steps to transform our transportation system to grow jobs, boost the economy, and improve quality of life.
The budget specifically includes a $2.8 billion increase for infrastructure over the next five years. In total over the next five years, approximately $10 billion will be spent on transportation between this budget, planned capital spending, and federal funds.
The budget agreement includes billions for transportation over the next decade, by taking a half a cent off the sales tax – which will remain flat at 6.35% – and dedicating it to modernizing our rail, rebuilding our roads, and transforming the way we travel.
This funding will mean that transportation will be fully funded for nearly a decade, allowing the state to plan and design projects in Governor Malloy’s long-term vision, as well as funding to complete many of them.
“Working with House and Senate leaders, we were able to come to this historic agreement where we fund transportation for nearly a decade and provide car tax and property tax relief,” Governor Malloy said. “I want to thank our partners in the General Assembly for their hard work and commitment on these important issues.”
The Governor continued, “With the transportation component to the agreement, this will truly be a historic budget. We’re able to make the biggest investment in transportation ever – and we’re able to achieve that without burdening the middle class. When I took office, we had few shovel-ready projects, and our failure to invest over the decades has artificially held back our economy. However, the smart decisions we make in this agreement now will deliver a brighter future for Connecticut in the long-run. We shouldn’t stand for 100-year-old bridges and 42 hours per year in traffic on average for every man, woman, and child. Connecticut deserves better – and that’s just what this budget delivers. This is truly historic.”