
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, August 6, 1993                   TAG: 9308060202
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WINCHESTER                                LENGTH: Short

4 STATES CALL FOR FEDERAL STUDY ON UPGRADING I-81

Lawmakers from Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia and Pennsylvania have called on federal highway officials to study when and where Interstate 81 should be upgraded.

"We only have 12 miles of Interstate 81, but it is a very busy 12 miles. It's the largest amount of traffic in western Maryland - you have to go to I-95 near Baltimore to find worse," said Wally Beaulieu of the Maryland State Highway Administration.

Several lawmakers said they believe the highway should be expanded from four lanes to six lanes to accommodate the increasing traffic. However, only Virginia has launched a study of the possibility of expansion.

"The question right now is: Do we have enough lanes? Our feeling is that we are not going to be able to accommodate the traffic of the next century with only four," said John Milliken, Virginia's secretary of transportation.

A dozen state legislators and administrators met Wednesday for a Quad State Conference meeting. The gathering is designed to discuss mutual problems.

by CNB