Continuing on the nationwide grassroots road show with the Chamber-led Americans for Transportation Mobility, I visited Greensboro, North Carolina and Boise, Idaho.  I heard a lot of chatter regarding concerns with the state of our infrastructure and had the opportunity to speak with a number of folks in their local communities.  Here are some of the comments I heard on the road:

• Jerry Cook, vice president, Hanesbrands, Inc.: “We are the largest online retail distributor in the region, and I can tell you that our failure to adequately address North Carolina interstates, has resulted in an underperforming business opportunity for us--plain and Simple.  If you cannot ship and distribute on a predictable basis, you cannot survive.”
• Gene Conti, North Carolina head of the Department of Transportation: “Of the 1,300 fatalities last year in North Carolina, more than half resulted from functionally obsolete roads--we don’t have the money to fix them-we just don’t!”
• Brad Dean, president and CEO of Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce: “Despite what many believe, the interstate system is not complete. With a strong federal partner, the long awaited completion of I-73 can create 20,000 permanent jobs in a region with over 20% unemployment.”
• Senator Mike Crapo in Boise, ID: “Getting a bill done this Congress is something we have to do.  I have always supported this bill and will continue to do so.”

Check out some of the press we received:

NEWS14-TV, Charolotte, NC

WMBF, Myrtle Beach/Florence, SC.