Infrastructure

The Connecticut Bond Commission earmarked $11.7 million for two Department of Transportation projects at the Stamford train station and in four other communities.

The Columbia River Crossing project, a $3.4 billion replacement of the Interstate 5 bridge connecting Portland, Ore. and Vancouver, Wash., appears stalled unless Washington state lawmakers approve $450 million soon.

A Virginia Circuit Court judge has ruled that the financing mechanism of the Elizabeth River Crossings project in the southeastern part of the state is unconstitutional, calling into question the future of the multi-billion dollar public-private partnership and other Virginia P3s.

New York University's Mitchell Moss said tolling the Van Wyck Expressway in Queens borough would generate a reliable revenue stream for the debt-strapped MTA.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation is conducting new environmental studies for the $802 million Monroe Connector/Bypass toll road for which much of the debt has already been sold.

Richland County, S.C., started paying an extra penny sales tax Wednesday, which will provide $1 billion for transportation projects over the next 22 years.

Fitch Ratings on Tuesday became the third agency to withdraw its rating on $131.2 million of defaulted toll-bridge bonds issued by north Florida's Santa Rosa Bay Bridge Authority.

The impact of advances in information technology and the proliferation of open networks are mostly positive for financial markets, said speakers at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., has introduced legislation to authorize $500 million of federal grant money for nationally or regionally important surface transportation projects.