Extending I-376 For All the Wrong Reasons

I am trying to understand the reasoning of extending I-376. I am against this change aside from the fact that it creates needless work for me by having to change pages and delete some.

Don't get me wrong, I am for the upgrades of the Parkway West that are included in the extension plan such as the 60 cloverleaf in Robinson. What I do not understand is the "logic" behind this renumbering.

Pittsburgh International Airport is not on an Interstate
As US Representative Melissa Hart said in a WTAE-TV Pittsburgh report in October, "We have the only international airport not served by an Interstate." Obviously she forgot about Dulles International right outside the capital, or George Bush/Houston Intercontinental, or LaGuardia International, should I go on? It is not as if USAirways "de-hubbed" Pittsburgh International because it wasn't connected directly to an Interstate. If they wait long enough, the PTC might get I-576 for the Southern Beltway which will end right at the PIA interchange on 60.

US Senator Rick Santorum said, "People from outside the regional will know this is no dirt road." An exaggeration, but no matter what map you look at, it shows expressway-grade highways around the airport.

If you sign it, they will come
Some also think that placing a red-white-blue shield on an expressway automatically brings economic growth faster than a plain, boring old black and white shield. As if the Interstate fairy comes by and brings jobs overnight, ignoring the business climate of the region. Sally Haas, President of the Pittsburgh Airport Area Chamber of Commerce was quoted in the March 21, 2006 Pittsburgh Tribune-Review as saying, "Having that designation is critical for getting us on the map outside the Pittsburgh region. That's the thing that attracts developers here."

We are already on the map, any of which can be purchased in the Pennsylvania Highways Map Store. I guess since there was no Interstate designation on the Parkway, the development at the 60 cloverleaf just happened by coincidence.

Easier to get to Downtown
Another reason I have heard is that it will be easier for travelers leaving the airport to get to downtown. To leave the airport, you have two options: Beaver/Moon and Pittsburgh. If you follow the signs for Pittsburgh, and don't take any exits, you'll wind up in downtown whether its PA 60, US 22/US 30, I-279, or I-376.

Instead of the money that will go into replacing all of the signage, I'd rather it go to fix some of the 47% of structurally deficient bridges across the state. Or else we'll see more failures such as the Lake View Drive overpass on I-70, and next time, the outcome might be worse.

Renaming of Interstate 376 Corridor a Step Closer - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette