Governor Bill Richardson Unveils GRIP II – Transportation Partnership to Address Community Road Projects

Governor Bill Richardson Unveils GRIP II - Transportation Partnership to Address Community Road Projects

Governor Bill Richardson today announce a plan, called GRIP II, to partner with local communities across New Mexico to pay for local transportation projects. The plan is an offshoot of the successful GRIP (Governor Richardson's Investment Program) - a $1.6 billion initiative that financed 40 major highway projects and commuter rail service in the Rio Grande corridor.

"This is an ambitious effort to tackle neglected road projects around the state - local road projects that often get lost in the shuffle," Governor Richardson said. "Following the success of our GRIP program, this year I will work with the Legislature to pass GRIP II - a $250-million dollar partnership with local communities designed to provide muchneeded support for road projects in every corner of the state."

State Transportation Secretary Rhonda Faught worked with communities to identify priority road projects that need funding now. The GRIP II plan would carve out $50 million dollars a year in each of the next five years to begin to address these local road needs. The partnership would require local matching dollars from these local communities.

The first project would be $25 million to support roads at the new Spaceport in Southern New Mexico.

"The original GRIP program is creating thousands of good-paying jobs for New Mexicans and millions of dollars in business for New Mexico companies," Governor Richardson said. "We broke up those 40 projects into smaller construction segments to
allow smaller, local contractors to bid on and compete for the work. And our plan has been a resounding success.

"This is an investment in the economic growth of our communities. We are also addressing critical public safety needs by building and maintaining safer roads."

http://www.governor.state.nm.us/press/2006/jan/010906_03.pdf