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 DOT Silence Unacceptable
by Tom Campbell
November 9, 2006
Negative news about our state’s transportation program continues. Cost over-runs not being properly managed, road funds dangerously short of needs, funding formulas that don’t match traffic counts, unacceptable delays in building roads, and poor supervision of roads that are being built. That’s the picture at the NC DOT.
Stories within the past week reveal that the top three-inch layers from 10.3 miles of the outer lanes in both directions of I-40 will be removed and replaced with asphalt. Not only is the project going to further snarl traffic on one of the busiest roadways in our state, it is going to cost 10 to 15 million dollars and take months to complete.
What makes it even worse is that DOT Secretary Lyndo Tippett refuses to even acknowledge the problems, the costs, or who is responsible for the crumbling pavement. That is inexcusable, but no more so than revelations weeks ago that internal audits of hundreds of millions of dollars spent by DOT have not been performed for years. Again, there was no response from Tippett or anyone within the department. Within the past few days we have also learned that one of the reasons why we can’t build roads we desperately need is because our Congressmen and Senators are diverting federal road dollars for their own pet projects.
Partisan politics, scandals and a myriad of problems have long been associated with our Department of Transportation. This is the same DOT that condoned the “Booze Cruise” in July; the same DOT that has seen several Ferry Division personnel, including its director, convicted of illegally dredging a channel in Currituck County. Again, no explanation.
Where there are big dollars involved there is the possibility of corruption. It wasn’t too many years ago that Norris Tolson, now Secretary of Revenue, was recruited to clean up DOT following a scandal. We admit it is easy to sit on the sidelines and cast stones. Perhaps we are too quick to form conclusions, but our concerns could easily be put to rest if Secretary Tippett or Governor Easley would come forward to explain what is going on at DOT.
We would like to understand more about why it costs so much and takes so long to build a road. We would eagerly listen to explanations about oversight issues and accountability for poor construction. If there are plausible explanations why this huge department is unable to conduct internal audits or manage cost overruns, we want to hear them. The people of our state have proved they are understanding, even forgiving.
What they cannot understand, and should not tolerate, is the great silence coming from our DOT. There have been far too many negative stories with too few explanations. Public officials are accountable to the citizens they serve. It is time for real disclosure or, in its absence, further investigation into what is going on in DOT.
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