Political Quotes

“I am pleased to join my colleague Senator Barrasso in introducing the Rural Mobility and Access for America Act. The transportation challenges in rural States are unique. In my State of North Dakota, we have more miles of road per capita than any State in the Nation. There are more than 11,000 miles of highway in North Dakota, which translates into approximately 166 miles of road for every 1,000 people in North Dakota. We have a very large road network with a small population base to support it. In fact, North Dakota only has 16 people supporting each lane mile of Federal-aid road. The national average is 129 people per lane mile. Highways in North Dakota and other rural States connect the Nation and help ensure the effective movement of people and goods across the country. Today, the highways in the western part of my State are being impacted by a rise in truck traffic as a result of the oil boom occurring from the development of the Bakken formation. Our roads and highways are seeing a dramatic increase in trucks that are transporting supplies to the oil fields or oil to gathering lines. The agriculture industry is also reliant on a strong, nationally connected road network to move products and services. Approximately 69 percent of the goods shipped annually from North Dakota are carried by truck. Significant and growing agricultural businesses throughout my state rely on the road network to receive raw goods and transport their finished products to market.”