Road planners discuss the US 20 freeway that will never be

Add comment April 21st, 2008

Something called the Tri-State Alliance had a big meeting in Freeport on Monday. They talked about transportation topics, such as building that “Glacier Shadow Pass” US 20 freeway from Freeport to Galena.

It’s now a $1 billion project. It’s been planned in various forms since before World War II. And it will never be built.

Better to do a major re-think and do what the much smarter state of Wisconsin does — build modest, two-lane bypasses around Galena, Stockton, Elizabeth, etc.

Anyone who hasn’t been on 20 for a few years should know that IDOT widened and put in passing lanes on the hilly parts, and it’s just not that bad.

Traffic patterns simply have changed over the years. Yes, I know the state of Iowa has made US 20 a four lane all the way to Fort Dodge, but 20 miles west of Dubuque at about Dyersville it’s so empty you can land planes on it.

I travelled US 20 from downtown Chicago to Yellowstone National park back in 2004, and there’s just not a lot of traffic on it for one, very good reason : It doesn’t connect major cities. After Rockford, the cities get smaller and smaller.

Hillary favored to win Pennsylvania

Add comment April 21st, 2008

As the crucial Pennsylvania Democratic primary fast approaches,  conventional wisdom has Barck Obama losing to Hillary Clinton. In fact, Obama is trying to dampen expectations that he possibly could win, saying that he expects she will triumph. A big Hillary win — 10 points or more — puts her back in serious contention for the Demo nomination. If she wins by , say, 2 percent, it’s a wash.

If by some chance occurance, Obama wins — and I don’t expect he will — Hillary will be under tremendous pressure to give up the ghost, although she won’t. With the Clintons, it’s not about the Democratic Party, or about the country.

It’s all about them.

Meanwhile, John McCain is looking more and more presidential as the Dems form a circle and shoot inward.