CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION NEWS RELEASE 2800 BERLIN TURNPIKE P.O. BOX 317546 NEWINGTON CONNECTICUT, 06131-7546
FOR RELEASE: December 6, 2007	FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:    OFFICE OF COMMUNICATIONS    TELEPHONE: (860) 594-3062    Fax: (860) 594-3066    Web site:www.ct.gov/dot

LISTENING SESSIONS FOR THE STATE’S LONG-RANGE TRANSPORTATION PLAN

On Tuesday, December 11, 2007, the Connecticut Department of Transportation will host the final of seven Listening Sessions for updating the State’s Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRP). This federally mandated document will outline Connecticut‘s transportation policies and strategies for the next 20 years. The session will be held in the Community Room of the Norwalk City Hall at 125 East Avenue from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.  Parking will be available on site. At the start of the Listening Session, prior to opening the floor to public comment, a 20-minute presentation will be given that offers background information on the LRP.

“I remind interested parties planning to attend the session that the LRP is not a project-specific document. We will be reviewing comments received and current programs to determine general patterns and areas requiring our attention with respect to the transportation system as a whole, which includes air, water, and land travel and transportation infrastructure.  The LRP will outline these issues and provide the framework of strategies and actions that will be referred to when projects and programs are evaluated in the future.  Publishing this document assists the Department in pursuing prudent and feasible projects that are consistent with the strategies and actions previously agreed to by the public and transportation officials in the LRP,” Commissioner Ralph J. Carpenter stated.

Written comments, received prior to December 31, 2007, will be reviewed as part of the process for preparing a draft document.  Please include the following with your comments: name, address, and, if applicable, the company or organization that you represent. Comments may be mailed to the attention of Ms. Roxane Fromson, Transportation Supervising Planner, Bureau of Policy and Planning, Connecticut Department of Transportation, P.O. Box 317546, Newington, Connecticut 06131-7546. Comments may also be submitted electronically to Roxane.Fromson@po.state.ct.us.  

Additional information on the LRP and the proposed listening sessions is available at https://www.ct.gov/dot.  Included on the Department’s web site are the listening session schedule, an informational brochure on the process, and a downloadable version of the current document, the Long-Range Transportation Plan for the State of Connecticut (2004-2030).  Copies of the presentation will be available on the Department’s web site following the final listening session.

The meeting facility is handicapped accessible.  Deaf and hearing impaired persons, wishing to attend a listening session and requiring an interpreter, may make arrangements by contacting the Department’s Office of Communications at (860) 594-3061 (voice only) at least five working days prior to the date of the session.