Increased investment in transportation infrastructure has far-reaching effects on our nation's economy, our competitiveness in the world marketplace, and the quality of life in our communities. On a daily basis, hard working Americans and businesses will benefit from such investment through shortened travel time, increased productivity, and improved safety.

Throughout our nation's history, economic growth, prosperity, and opportunity have followed investments in the nation's infrastructure. For example, from 1980 to 1991, almost one-fifth of the increase in productivity in the U.S. economy was attributable to investment in highways. Mississippi's highways, rail systems, canals, locks, and roads are a vital part of our economy. This critical infrastructure is responsible for employing thousands of people and ensuring the movement of residents and goods. I am committed to seeing that North Mississippi has both a safe and efficient transportation system.

Member Dsignated High Priority Projects (HPPs): FY2010 Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficienct Transportation Equity Act (SAFETEA-LU)

The projects below represent important investments in North Mississippi's infrastructure. They will upgrade our roads and highways to make them safer and easier to utilize while also making sure that our state is a premier place for goods to be transported to market, expanding our economy and creating important jobs. These projects will also ensure that Mississippians and our visitors can get to work, school, and home faster, cheaper, and with a better peace of mind.

• City of Tupelo, MS Major Thoroughfare Program, $43,477,640.  Funds will be used to engineer and construct an ongoing collaboration between the City of Tupelo and the Mississippi Department of Transportation that is intended to alleviate traffic congestion in North Mississippi while fostering economic development and growth through improving needed infrastructure in the region.

• Interstate-69, $476,800,000.  I-69 is a multi-state and multi-member interstate initiative connecting the United States to Canada and Mexico.  Funding is reserved for completing projects associated with the interstate that will directly benefit commerce in North Mississippi through the completion of the next phase of I-69.  The Department of Transportation has designated this corridor as one of its top priorities during this reauthorization period. 

• Star Landing Corridor, Desoto County, MS, $10,000,000.  This three mile initiative is part of a larger twenty-five mile project that is designed to relieve traffic congestion that has terminus points at U.S. Highway 61 and U.S. Highway 78.  The Star Landing Corridor is intended to improve commuter access to I-55 for the region, while at the same time improving and fostering economic development throughout Desoto County and the surrounding counties in the region. 

• Mississippi Highway 15 Upgrades and Lane Extension, $12,000,000.  MS Highway 15 is one of the most heavily traveled two lane highway in the country.  Reconstruction of the roadway is essential due to safety concerns, along with promoting multiple endeavors across the highway that are directly linked to the furniture and automotive industries developing throughout the region.   

• Columbus/Greenwood, MS Railway Revitalization, $64,000,000.  This reconstructive railway project would open ninety-four miles of closed rail line that stretches from eastern to western Mississippi, and is of critical importance to the development of a struggling statewide economy.

• Crescent Corridor Fayette County, TN Terminal Location, $4, 400,000.  Funding will used to construct an access road in Marshall, MS that will provide transportation access to the Norfolk Southern Fayette County, TN Terminal location, which is located directly across the Mississippi and Tennessee state lines.  This railway terminal venture is anticipated to create over five hundred jobs in the surrounding area. 

• Mississippi Highway 4 Upgrades and Construction, $50,000,000.  Redevelopment of a thirty-mile stretch of MS Highway 4 from Senatobia, MS into Marshall County, MS.  These road improvements are projected to relieve congestion, improve safety hazards, and promote sustainable economic growth in this transportation corridor.