News Digest Infrastructure

  • More pressure put on federal board to OK Tahawus rail line - 05/04/12
    New York By: Jon Alexander The federal Surface Transportation Board is coming under increasing pressure from federal officials to act immediately and approve Iowa Pacific’s application to reop…Read More
  • Schumer urges federal approval of freight line - 04/30/12
    New York By: Staff U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., on Monday urged the federal Surface Transportation Board to approve, without delay, a request from Iowa Pacific Holdings to reopen the rail …Read More
  • N.H. bypassed in proposed private east-west highway - 04/20/12
    New Hampshire By: Kathleen Callahan If it's constructed, a proposed private highway running the width of northern Maine would dim the already slim likelihood that a federally funded east-west hi…Read More
  • NY OK's bid to reopen freight line in Adirondacks - 03/21/12
    New York By: Associated Press Two state agencies are on board with a railway's proposal to reopen a freight line between North Creek and Newcomb in the Adirondacks. The Glens Falls Post-St…Read More
  • White Mountain National Forest Gets $4 Million - But Still Falls Short For Irene Repairs - 03/16/12
    New Hampshire By: Chris Jensen The White Mountain National Forest will be getting $4 million in federal funds to repair road and bridge damage caused by Tropical Storm Irene.  But that will…Read More
  • DOT holds hearing on draft rail plan - 03/16/12
    New Hampshire By: Barbara Tetreault Area residents stressed their support for passenger rail service from Portland to Montreal and for preserving industrial rail sidings at a hearing Thursday on…Read More
  • Cuomo plans $25 million boost to upstate broadband access - 03/03/12
    New York By: Michael Gormley Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants to devote $25 million of a job creation fund to expand broadband Internet access to rural upstate and underserved urban areas of New York tha…Read More
  • Schumer: Federal funds needed for local water, sewer projects - 02/08/12
    New York By: Staff writer A federal study shows New York needs $29.7 billion in upgrades to long-overlooked water and sewer systems. U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said Wednesday the …Read More
  • Maine could lose money for scenic roads if federal bill passes - 02/07/12
    Maine By: Bill Trotter If a transportation bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives is approved as written, it could mean the end of a federal program that has brought $5 million to …Read More
  • Vermont gets $21M for flood-damaged communities - 01/20/12
    Vermont By: The Associated Press Vermont is getting $21.6 million in federal emergency funds to help rebuild communities destroyed by flooding from Tropical Storm Irene. The funding from U…Read More
  • Shumlin vows statewide broadband in 2 years - 12/09/11
    Vermont By: Staff, wire reports A new cell tower will allow skiers at Sugarbush and environs to stay plugged in, Gov. Peter Shumlin announced Friday at a news conference with Verizon Wireless. …Read More
  • US sends Vt., NH and Maine money for road repairs - 11/28/11
    Northern Forest Region By: The Associated Press The U.S. Department of Transportation is sending Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine millions of dollars to help repair roads damaged in storms earli…Read More
  • Central Maine Power begins construction on new transmission line - 11/26/11
    Maine By: The Associated Press Central Maine Power Co. has begun construction on a new 39-mile transmission line. The $33 million line will extend from Moscow to Benton. Company officials …Read More
  • Rural broadband survives GOP challenge - 11/25/11
    New York By: Marc Heller A program that has helped spread high-speed Internet service in Northern New York and other rural areas has survived a challenge in Congress. Watertown Daily Times a…Read More
  • Vermont smart-meter opposition takes shape - 11/15/11
    Vermont By: Dave Gram Vermont's electricity utilities say they'll work during the next year to roll out new "smart meters" -- and digital networks to support them -- that will help them more clo…Read More
  • Maine not alone in concerns over smart meter technology - 11/14/11
    Maine By: Associated Press The cost of using an air conditioner -- whether it runs during the peak time for electrical usage or during off-peak hours -- is still the same for many electricity us…Read More
  • Funds available for border infrastructure - 11/11/11
    New York By: Chris Knight The U.S. Senate is considering a measure that would provide funding for infrastructure improvement projects along New York's border with Canada. Adirondack Daily En…Read More
  • Cable companies to offer $9.95 broadband to poor homes - 11/09/11
    Northern Forest Region By: Peter Svensson Cable companies said Wednesday they will offer Internet service for $9.95 per month to homes with children that are eligible for free school lunches. …Read More
  • New bridge carries fiber-optic link - 11/08/11
    Vermont By: Terri Hallenbeck Monday’s opening of the new Lake Champlain Bridge marked more than a new route for travelers. It also pro­vides a new route for fiber-optic cable. Strung…Read More
  • Flooded towns to get $2M in highway aid - 11/08/11
    New York By: Adirondack Daily Enterprise Staff U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand say flood-damaged upstate New York towns will get $2 million in emergency funding to fix roads an…Read More
  • Richmond meeting to discuss smart grid - 11/07/11
    Vermont By: Burlington Free Press Staff Vermont State Reps. Anne O'Brien, Terry Macaig and Jim McCullough will host a presentation on the smart grid at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Richmond Library. …Read More
  • 1.2 Million in Northeast Still Without Power - 11/02/11
    Northern Forest Region By: Dave Collins Crews worked feverishly today to restore power to nearly 1.2 million homes and businesses in the Northeast in the dark after a freak weekend snowstorm, wh…Read More
  • AT&T expands Adirondack Park cell network - 10/28/11
    New York By: Adirondack Daily Enterprise Staff HULETTS LANDING - AT&T officials held a press conference here Thursday to announce the activation of eight new cell service sites and mobile br…Read More
  • Route 141 in Waldo County named Maine’s worst road - 10/27/11
    Maine By: The Associated Press Route 141 in Waldo County has been named the winner of this year’s “Worst Road Contest.” Carol Kelley of Waldo received a $250 check for car repairs fo…Read More
  • NC Council says no to rooftop highway, for now - 10/24/11
    New York Leaders of the new North Country Economic Development Council say they're leaving the Rooftop Highway, dubbed I-98 by supporters, out of the mix when they send their proposals to Albany. …Read More
  • Cell tower boom slows in Adirondacks - 10/24/11
    New York By: Chris Knight The cell tower building boom in the Adirondacks has slowed this year. Applications to the Adirondack Park Agency are down - the agency has only issued nine permits or a…Read More
  • Everyone should have access to digital information, session urges - 10/18/11
    Maine By: Nick McCrea The concept of community is changing. Before the Internet, community participation meant showing up at a meeting to voice your opinion. Applying for a job meant going…Read More
  • A $4 Billion “Rooftop” Highway For Upstate NY? - 10/07/11
    New York by Nadine Lemmon The signs of crumbling infrastructure in New York are everywhere, and state officials are actively discussing how to fix it given financial constraints. Paradoxicall…Read More
  • Rebuilding Trails After Hurricane Irene - 10/06/11
    New York by Christine Bourjade Trail work calls many a climber but with life getting in the way it’s only a lucky few who actually get to enjoy this dream job. One needs time and energy to …Read More
  • Cell and broadband service still lag behind in North Country, Sen. Little says - 10/06/11
    New York State Senator Betty Little sounded a familiar note Tuesday when she called for big gaps in cell phone and internet service in the North Country to be closed--for safety's sake and for t…Read More
  • Irene’s Impact Some businesses were busy before, after big storm - 10/04/11
    New York by Mike Zummo Jim Landrio had never seen traffic back up along North Comrie Avenue in Johnstown the way it did Monday. Leader-Herald article…Read More
  • Northern Pass foes: It's about money - 10/03/11
    New Hampshire by Paula Tracy Northern Pass opponents agree with New England Power Generators Association that the $1.1 billion hydropower transmission project is not about bringing clean gree…Read More
  • Helping the Flooded Rebate program helps victims of storms buy new appliances - 10/02/11
    New York by Mike Zummo The New York State Energy and Research Development Agency has given people affected by Tropical Storms Irene and Lee some relief in the form of $8 million worth of reba…Read More
  • Northern Pass Buys Up Land As New Line Takes Shape - 09/30/11
    New Hampshire by Donna Jordan With a decades-old land acquisition arm of PSNH and Northeast Utilities already in place, the Northern Pass transmission lline project appears to have secured it…Read More
  • Real Vermonters: Our image in the mirror - 09/30/11
    Vermont by Jon Margolis It was a terrible natural disaster, but the response by officials and ordinary citizens alike was remarkable, perhaps heart-warming. Vermont Digger article…Read More
  • Schumer, Gillibrand announce release of highway funds - 09/29/11
    New York   WASHINGTON - The state of New York will get emergency funds to address damage to highways and bridges caused by Tropical Storm Irene. Adirondack Daily Enterprise article…Read More
  • Ways to help and get help after Irene - 09/23/11
    New Yorlk Margaret Moran KEENE - Some goods and volunteers are still needed three-and-a-half weeks after Tropical Storm Irene hit Aug. 28. With the approach of winter, donations of d…Read More
  • Sugar Hill residents meet with Lynch about Northern Pass - 09/22/11
    New Hampshire CONCORD - On Monday, September 12, 2011 four representatives of the Sugar Hill Advisory Committee on Northern Pass – Nancy Martland, Dolly McPhaul, Jamie White and Doug Evelyn …Read More
  • Higher truck weights provision approved by Senate committee - 09/21/11
    Maine WASHINGTON — A provision that would allow 100,000-pound trucks on Maine’s interstate highways permanently took another step toward success Wednesday, but the measure still faces major …Read More
  • Major Vermont links continue to reopen after flooding - 09/21/11
    Vermont Associated Press MONTPELIER — Major Vermont roadways are continuing to reopen to traffic after flood damages from Tropical Storm Irene have been repaired. On Monday, the Ve…Read More
  • Heart of Vermont still in recovery mode after Tropical Storm Irene - 09/21/11
    Vermont Candace Page In Lower Granville, a roadside line of multicolored, hand-lettered signs advertised a community's gratitude, Burma Shave-style: "Thank You to everyone for putting this…Read More
  • Irene Damage Edges Toward the $1 Billion Mark - 09/20/11
    Vermont Anne Galloway Three weeks after Tropical Storm Irene whacked southern and central Vermont, local and federal officials are getting closer to a grand total for the damage. The price…Read More
  • Gillibrand has plan to help upstate farms and families - 09/19/11
    New York Daniel McDonough U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is introducing legislation to aid the upstate economy following the recent damage caused by Tropical Storms Irene and Lee. Her …Read More
  • State actions aid the flooded - 09/19/11
    New York Jimmy Vielkind ALBANY -- Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced several new state initiatives to help people hurt in floods from tropical storms Irene and Lee, but balked at the idea of a…Read More
  • Route 302 Opens Saturday - 09/16/11
    New Hampshire Amy Quinton Governor John Lynch announced that Route 302 in Hart's Location will reopen Saturday, more than a week ahead of its repair schedule. NH Public Radio story…Read More
  • Brookfield Renewable Power Urges Anglers To Fish Safely At Varick Hydropower Dam On Oswego River - 09/14/11
    New York OSWEGO, NY – Brookfield Renewable Power announces that it has implemented enhanced safety tools and warnings for anglers who recreate on or near the company’s Varick Hydropower Dam …Read More
  • Will America save its Postal Service? - 09/10/11
    By: Randolph E. Schmid Imagine a nation without the Postal Service. No more birthday cards and bills or magazines and catalogs filling the mailbox. It’s a worst-case scenario being painted …Read More
  • Hurricane damage in Keene, NY - 09/10/11
    Damages in the Northeastern Adirondack Park of New York State from the 2011 flooding as a result of Hurricane Irene were extensive. Nine to eleven inches of rain fell in a 12 hour period August 28, 20…Read More
  • VT's major East-West roadways to reopen - 09/09/11
    Vermont By: Lisa Rathke The major east-west roads across Irene-ravaged sections of Vermont will reopen in the next week and a half, but they might be in rough shape, Gov. Peter Shumlin said yest…Read More
  • DRED, Forest Service check in on Irene damage - 09/08/11
    New Hampshire Melissa Grima GORHAM — The Commissioner of the Department of Resources and Economic Development (DRED) along with members of his staff and representatives from the US Fores…Read More