Rumbling: Carpino to advocate for improved highways; Serra & Lesser Are you Listening?

Editorial: State Rep. Christie Carpino, R, Cromwell and Portland, represents the 32nd Assembly District in Connecticut. Below is an open letter Carpino has submitted to various news outlets with her plans to advocate for Connecticut road maintenance. Carpino's district used to include Middletown, until Democrats pushed for redistricting to better favor getting them elected. Our 25 year long veteran representative & hometown native State Senator Joe Serra is head of the state's highway commission &  cash cow CASHO, yet Middetown boasts the most deadiest stretch of roadway in the state, and by some reports, the whole northeast. On ramp 17 on Route 9 being the site of many a vehicular accident, some lethal. Rep. Matt Lesser has been too  busy advocating for college tuition tax breaks to address the issue either. There are state roads in Middletown that feel like washboards! 

Lesser and Serra, take note and learn a lesson from Carpino's initiative. Carpino's letter is below.

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To the Editor:

The recent White House report which found that Connecticut has the worst roads in the nation is upsetting and unacceptable, but not surprising to me. After all, I travel our roads daily right alongside my constituents. The legislative majority has failed the commuters of Connecticut.

Let us not forget, Connecticut also has the fourth highest gasoline taxes in the nation at 67.7 cents per gallon yet clearly this money is not being used for our critical state transportation needs. The governor has diverted over $189 million dollars away from transportation funding to be used on other projects.

The state budget I voted against in 2013 broke transportation promises made by Gov. Malloy dating back to 2009, when he promised to preserve the dedicated fund for transportation projects. It also raised CT Transit bus fares by 20 cents and paratransit fares by 15 percent.

In 2013, I took action and voted for a law which will provide a statutory lockbox on the Special Transportation Fund effective July 1, 2015. Any funds that will be put into STF can only be used for transportation purposes, unless the law is changed. Keep in mind that there is nothing preventing a future legislature from simply appropriating less funds to the STF.

Carpino looks into Deadly Crashes in Portland, Middletown Reps ZZZZZZZ....

Rep. Carpino,
used to represent
 part of Middletown.

The Middletown Mess or the "Piddletown Mess" published a story today that Representative for Portland and East Hampton, State Representative Christie Carpino is asking safety officials to look into the stretch of roadway in Portland that has been the site of many deadly car crashes. The area known as "The Ledges" along Route 66 has been an area were many fatal accidents have been the site of.

Thank you Ms. Carpino for doing YOUR JOB! We wish you still had Middletown in your district! Maybe next time you are at the capital you can give Ol' Joe and Matty a sharp elbow to the side to wake them up from their comas regarding the roadways in Middletown. 

Highway Routes 17 and 9 running through Middletown are a disaster, ranking number 1 as the most dangerous highways in the state. 

http://www.ctnewsjunkie.com/ctnj.php/archives/entry/connecticut_worst_roads_in_the_nation/

In a recent report by the American Society of Civil Engineers, Connecticut & Illinois tied for  the worst roads in the nation. 

Rep. Pappa Joe, Middletown. 
Head of Highway Committee has deadliest
 stretch in his own town! WTF.

And at the top of Connecticuts list, Middletown scores number 1.

25+ year veteran Rep. Joe Serra (D), who lives in and represents Middletown, is head of the Highways and Transportation Committee.

 Serra also runs CASHO - aka Connecticut Association of Street & Highways Officials, Inc. a "non profit" that oversees the conditions on CT's roadways. Despite this, Middletown can boast that is has the No. 1 most deadly section of highway in the state!  According to  Department of Transportation records, while it has a somewhat scenic view of the river, the on ramp where Route 17 merges with Route 9 has been the site of more accidents than anywhere else in the state.

 Is an increase in patronage to businesses downtown worth the tragedies that have resulted from traffic lights put in place to direct people to Main Street? With new developments on the horizon, what will the new traffic patterns needed to be to satisfy developers look like? What have we learned and what can we do to make this stretch of road safer now that there may be new opportunities?

The Hartford Courant published an article about the  CT Department of Transportation's conclusion that this stretch in Middletown is the most dangerous stretch of roadway in the state. Read the article  here. In the Courant's article, manager of Amato's on Main Street Diane Gervais describes the delicate relationship between Route 9 Traffic and Main Street patronage, she is said: "Our customers need access to Route 9, and we need access to our customers from Route 9."

PLEASE WAKE UP Rep. Serra and Rep. Lesser! - Rep. Serra - maybe next time you are at CASHO or a highway meeting you might pipe up about the how many fatal accidents are happening in your own back yard? We are waiting?!

 http://articles.courant.com/2011-11-17/news/hc-worst-roads-1118-20111117_1_ramp-middletown-resident-rear-end-crashes)

http://www.middletownpress.com/general-news/20131115/officials-looking-at-safety-of-route-66-after-fatal-crashes

Carpino Visits with Cromwell Seniors

Local Representative Christie Carpino visits with Cromwell Seniors. Below is a youtube video from user Jpolke. 

Photos from Penguin Plunge for Special Olympics Middletown

State Rep. Christie Carpino  revisited her role as advocate of Special Olympians when she judged the costume contest at the Penguin Plunge to benefit Special Olympics of Connecticut.

 265 people plunged into the frigid waters of Crystal Lake on Feb. 23, 2013. A patch of ice had to be cleared from the lake to make way for plungers.The the costumes have become a part of what attracts large crowds of to see costumes and others take the plunge for a good cause. Middletown's Park and Recreation Department team called Frozen Fools lead by Karen Nocera and comprised of several department employees, and local students raised $3,000. Mayor Drew gave opening remarks, and plunged twice. Todd D'Aquila lead the fundraising for the Frozen Fools.  Other teams consisted of local high school student athletes and local law enforcement. Police plungers included. Emergency Personnel and First Responders were on duty throughout the event. Over all  nearly $50,000 was raised for Special Olympics. Click to enlarge reader submitted photos we assembled.

 In the photo above, Rep. Carpino on the left with PZ Commissioner  & plunger with Frozen Fools Molly Salafia.To the right is the entire Frozen Fools Park and Rec team from Middletown.

Local photographer Matt Kabel took photos of the day's events.
Many penguin costumes were worn.

Photo upper left, Mayor Dan Drew plunged twice, top right and bottom left.

Male Members of the Polish Falcons Nest 519 where the event was hosted dressed as princesses
Click for more photos: