Did The Michigan Senate Kill DRIC

Read what they passed for yourself.

It looks like the Senate was very angry when this was being considered. Look at the words of Senator Cropsey

• "we have spent $33 million to do a study ...
  
  "Michigan is in dire economic times and saying $1.5 billion to build a bridge might be necessary boggles the mind."

Seems to make sense over here for our Legislators at the Senior Levels to reconsider DRIC too don't you think.

Now the Michigan House and ultimately the Governor have to make a decision. All that the Senate Resolution provides is that nothing more shall be spent on the study until hearings are held and MDOT justifies what has been spent to date and is allowed to move forward.

Gee, that's called Government oversight over the bureaucracy isn't it! It means that the civil servants and consultants cannot run amuck spending money.

Of course, MDOT and the DRIC supporters have a real concern.

Take a look at what seems to be a huge waste of taxpayer money if another plaza and crossing were built a mile away from the Gateway project for which Michigan spent millions. That project was designed to accommodate another bridge and was a partnership between MDOT, FHWA and the Bridge Co.

How does one justify in Michigan spending millions for bore holes when a suitable site is already available? How does one justify disrupting hundreds in SW Detroit and how can they possibly be relocated! Does MDOT want to try and justify what they did with revitalization plans for Delray which will take forever to happen if anyone is actually interested in doing anything? How does MDOT justify not going with the crossing that they said was the best one when questions are now being raised about how the Canadian DRIC removed the Ambassador Bridge from the DRIC study?

Our politicians could learn from Michigan. (Gosh if they had learned about 5 years ago, we would have had the equivalent of the Ambassador Gateway project almost ready to open with the $300M BIF funds!) Why our politicians "respect the process" so that they do not have to be involved, or rather not until a month before an election and then they can beat on their chests to prove how tough they are.

Why don't they do the same as the Michigan Legislators and require MTO or Transport Canada to justify what they have done with millions of Canadian taxpayer dollars.

But our bureaucrats do not have to worry. Our Legislators won't dare hold any hearings. You see, the truth might come out then. Now THAT would be embarrassing to everyone!