Dear Sir,

After performing research regarding the FEIS for the proposed New-Terrain I-69, I wish to forward to the FHWA, the following comments:

The FEIS Review and Comment period was inadequate. The INDOT should have considered lengthening the review period as requested by the public.

With too little time to properly study and research this 3,000 page FEIS document, I have the following comments:

The validity of the purpose and need of the proposed New-Terrain I-69 has not been proven, nor detailed sufficiently for this taxpayer. The Core Goals are lax in justifying this potential $3 Billion project.

Improve the transportation linkage between Evansville and Indianapolis. (core goal)

Improve personal accessibility for Southwest Indiana residents. (core goal)

The Core Goal of 'Personal access' does not justify the cost to the taxpayer and the obvious impact this project will have on other necessary road projects across the entire state of Indiana. Road projects such as the upgrades to US 31, US 231, and SR 37 that are being analyzed and have been identified as necessary, will be directly impacted.

The much touted 'goal' of Economic Development is not even a core goal and the smart taxpayer knows that the Economic Development as a result of a new highway, means a handful of local residents, fighting over 10 jobs at gas stations and McDonalds.

Facilitate interstate and international movements of freight through the I-69 corridor, in a manner consistent with the national I-69 policies. (core goal)

There are two existing Interstate routes through Indiana, which are shorter and currently support this goal. This goal promotes NAFTA. NAFTA has not been the national 'savior' that some would have believed. National representatives are already back-peddling regarding the current and future benefits of NAFTA --- there are none.

Indiana has lost thousands of jobs to NAFTA. This drain on our employment base will financially affect generations to come and must be stopped. The first step in stopping this is to stop yet another proposed NAFTA Highway.

The INDOT preferred route Ð 3C, is one of the most expensive of the routes studied. This is fact. The estimated costs of this route (or any route, for that matter) are seriously underestimated. Again, the smart taxpayer understands that what is estimated to cost $3 billion today, will cost $10 Billion before it is all said and done in 16 years.

The cost to the taxpayer is not justified. Indiana is broke and cannot afford to saddle it's taxpayers with yet another waste of dollars that are much better applied to the routine rehabilitation and maintenance of our existing roads and highway. Better yet, it would be most comforting to this taxpayer, to see the same amount of energy expended on resolving our financial issues and our $1 Billion debt. The following is an INDOT quote on their web page. It is a fact that this project alone will have direct impact on the State-wide transportation needs for the next 15-20 years. Please reference the published, independent evaluation of the proposed I-69 extension by our own Senator Lawrence M Borst, Senate District 36.

At any given time, the transportation resources of the State may be focused more heavily in some regions than in others. For example, in the past, INDOT focused its transportation funds on completing Interstate routes elsewhere in the State. However, INDOT is committed to addressing the transportation needs of the entire State, taking into account the needs and priorities of each region. (Updated 12/12/00)

This preferred route is also extensively environmentally destructive. Yet, these facts continue to be ignored. The US Federal Highway Administration, Environmental Guidebook, in support of the National Environmental Policy Act, states that "public involvement and stakeholder input is essential" and that measures should be taken to "proactively involve resource protection agencies and other environmental interests".

It is a known fact that the Environmental Law and Policy Center (ELPC), the Hoosier Environmental Council (HEC), the Environmental Defense Fund, many of the state's elected officials and thousands of Indiana taxpayers (the public), have found serious flaws in the study for the proposed New-Terrain I-69 and with the validity of this proposed highway. And yet, we are ignored.

This highway will do irreparable harm to farms, agriculture, wetlands, woodlands, and communities such as the vast Amish community in Daviess and Martin counties.

By all measures, this study has been manipulated to attempt to justify a pre-determined route for this highway. By all measures, the protection against this type of manipulation, afforded the Nations public, has been ignored. These studies have wasted a decade of the Indiana taxpayerss time and money.

This taxpayer requests that the US Federal Highway Administration and the INDOT execute their fiscal responsibility to the public and the environment and stop pursuing this proposed New-Terrain I-69.

Sincerely,

Kathleen Crouch

(address withheld by COUNT US!)