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Friday, May 08, 2009

Obama's budget cuts W.Va.-East Coast road link

Previously, we reported on appropriations for the controversial Corridor H, which would provide a direct route from West Virginia to the East Coast but cross some of the highest, most scenic and most environmentally vulnerable ridges of the Appalachians. The relatively small $10 million appropriated for a short section of the road has been cut from President Obama's budget for next year, and is cited as "wasteful spending." The administration says the highway, part of the Appalachian system planned in the 1960s, should be built by the state, not the federal government. Virginia has refused to build its part of the road to Interstates 81 and 66.

Scott Finn of West Virginia Public Broadcasting reports that the project's main supporter, U.S. Sen. Robert Byrd, has vowed to get the funding put back into the budget when it goes to Congress. Finn also notes that Gov. Joe Manchin is moving $36 million in the state's federal highway money to the project. (Read more)

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