Toledo City Council on Tuesday unanimously adopted a resolution calling on Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine to “overrule” a recent Ohio Department of Transportation decision to cancel a study of bypass routes for U.S. 23 in Delaware County that could create a freeway link between Toledo and Columbus.
The existing highway’s more than three dozen traffic signals between State Rt. 229 and I-270 are “a big hindrance to travel, transportation, and shipping and it’s very important that this issue be addressed,” George Sarantou, a veteran councilman and co-sponsor of the resolution, said during a news conference an hour before council was to convene its meeting.
“At a time when the federal government is giving out billions of dollars to rebuild our infrastructure, ODOT is saying ‘No’ to northwest Ohio,” Mr. Sarantou said, adding that the state’s recent decision to rule out a Delaware bypass also hurts Ohio’s commerce with Michigan and neighboring Canada.
Councilman Theresa Morris, chairman of council’s Regional Growth, Development & Small Business Enterprise committee, then cracked that while Ohio was eager to include the Toledo area within its boundaries during the so-called Toledo War in the mid-1830s, “It sure doesn’t seem that Ohio claims us now” and protested that gas-tax dollars northwest Ohioans pay go “to the other parts of the state” because Ohio Turnpike tolls now bankroll projects in this area.
On the current U.S. 23 north of Columbus, “you take your life into your own hands with it not being a limited-access road,” Ms. Morris said.
A $1 million feasibility study, half-funded by ODOT and one-quarter each by the Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments and the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission, looked at five freeway options as well as converting existing U.S. 23 to a freeway. But ODOT decided early this month that, based on preliminary findings that none of those six alternatives would reduce the Toledo-Columbus travel time by more than 13 minutes and that all would cost well over $1 billion, further work on the “Route 23 Connect” study should be canceled.
“This study concludes that all of the proposed concepts for a fully free-flowing connection between Waldo and I-270 would substantially impact natural and cultural resources, and would cost much more than they provide in benefit,” a study summary stated. “As a result, none of the proposed concepts, as presented, are feasible to advance for further study.”
Instead, the report said, ODOT will develop for U.S. 23 an “action plan that identifies a series of future stand-alone improvement projects, providing drivers meaningful benefits sooner rather than later.”
Dan Tierney, Governor DeWine’s press secretary, said Tuesday afternoon that ODOT’s having canceled the study does not conclude the matter.
“ODOT recently determined that six options for creating a U.S. 23 freeway bypass were not feasible. This is not the end of the process, and Governor DeWine has directed ODOT to continue to review the matter to address the current problems,” he said. “As such, there is no decision to ‘overrule’.”
Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz thanked the councilmen for bringing the resolution forward and said the Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce and Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority stand with the city on the matter, along with the metropolitan council.
“Toledoans sometimes are said to have a chip on their shoulders because they believe Columbus ignores us,” the mayor said. “And if we do have that chip, it’s because it’s true. Maybe not all the time, but sometimes Columbus forgets about Toledo and treats us as second-class citizens. ... Even cities smaller than Toledo have direct access to Columbus. So if we feel second-class in Toledo, it’s because we are, and we’re tired of it.”
Mr. Sarantou also remarked that while a Delaware bypass is expected to cost more than $1 billion, ODOT recently spent $1.2 billion to build the State Rt. 823 bypass of U.S. 23 through Portsmouth, a much smaller city along the Ohio River.
“We need to press the governor to overturn the bureaucrats in Columbus’ decision,” he said. “And the time is now, because it will only get more expensive.”
First Published May 24, 2022, 8:36 p.m.
