Senator Ricchard Blumenthal was in Danbury yesterday morning to tout funding for the City included in the infrastructure bill, which is expected to be signed by the President on Monday. Blumenthal says the federal package approved last week is going to benefit Danbury more than most other towns in the state because the City is poised for progress.
He wants the DOT to prioritize funding for the I-84 widening project from exits 3 to 8, to improve the Metro North Danbury branch line and to get the old Maybrook Line to New York back up and running. Currently, the I-84 project isn't slated to start until the mid 2030s, but this funding could move up that timeline. The DOT study found that safety improvements for acceleration and deceleration lanes is needed from exits 1 through 11. More lanes between exits 3 and 4 and 7 and 8 were also studied.
Mayor Joe Cavo says the feasibility study of faster trains to New York using the Maybrook Line could be completed in a couple of months. Blumenthal called the project transformative.
Some funding in the infrastructure bill will go directly to the state Department of Transportation and Metro-North, but Connecticut will need to apply for other money in the form of competitive grants.
