Ohio transportation planners are cruising along the state’s Interstate 75 corridor gathering public opinion on what should be done to improve the highway, which stretches from Toledo to the Ohio River.

According to Associated Press reports, the interstate has doubled its original intended life expectancy and carries 10 times the number of vehicles it was designed to handle each day. Officials say the goal of the survey is to create a "premier transportation corridor" on a stretch of highway that has a significant impact on surrounding communities and public entities.
Unfortunately, the highway has many problems, including a deteriorating roadway base, bridges that are too low and narrow, and interchanges that cause traffic bottlenecks.
The Ohio Department of Transportation plans to not only obtain public comment, but also intends to study passenger and freight traffic volumes, accident rates, pavement and bridge conditions, existing and proposed commercial and industrial sites, and construction plans along the interstate.
According to the AP, I-75, which was built in the early to mid-1950s, was designed to last for 20 years. It has Ohio's heaviest truck traffic and is used for the transportation of $25 billion in commercial freight, including significant amounts to and from Canada. During the next 20 years, planners expect a 40 percent increase in vehicle miles traveled over the length of the I-75 corridor.