The purpose and goals of the Citizen’s Committee is to aid the Transportation Cabinet by making recommendations concerning the location, affects and mitigation of the proposed Interstate 66 from Somerset to London. The Committee will identify and develop criteria by which project alternates will be evaluated and compared.
The Committee is divided into four Sub-committees: 1) Environmental/Aesthetic; 2) Communities; 3) Business; and 4) Tourism/Economic Development. Objective, measurable criteria was developed by each Sub-Committee and given a ranking through two mailings to peer groups. In the first mailing, peer groups were asked to review established criteria and identify additional criteria not listed by the Sub-Committee. The second mailing asked the peer group to rank the three criteria they considered the most important. Mailings to over 10,000 people were made to develop and refine these factors.
The Committee will then assist the Department in assessing the project impacts for all considered alternates. Concerns or opportunities for each alternate will be reviewed for potential project affects or acceptability for future design considerations. Potential minimization and/or mitigation of impacts will also be reviewed.
Finally the Committee will act as a conduit for dialogue between all interested groups and the Transportation Cabinet. Questions or concerns that are expressed will be conveyed to the Cabinet for resolution during all stages of the project development. This process will provide a forum for identifying and prioritizing public concerns, and enable the Transportation Cabinet to make informed decisions based on public input, environmental and engineering studies.