Do you commute to Anchorage from the Valley? By car? By bus?
Or, are you a bike commuter around Anchorage, or a bus rider? Or maybe you just love driving your own car, everywhere.
Today’s show is for you.
Roads and transit are big issues all over Southcentral. As the saying goes, Alaska has two seasons: winter, and road construction.
The seed for this show dates to an email from the Mat-Su Borough to Hometown Alaska, mentioning their annual transportation fair, a one-stop-shop for project updates now in its ninth year.
We also learned that three years ago, Anchorage picked up the idea and now offers its own annual public information session.
Both events are a way to learn how your local landscape will be changing, and an opportunity to share your views on road-building, public transit, trail and bike commuting and recreation with the agencies that promote and do that work—all in one place, and with snacks!
- Mat-Su’s fair is 4-8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 22 at Raven Hall on the Alaska State Fairgrounds.
- Anchorage’s fair is early next year, from 3-7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017 at the Alaska Airlines Center at the University of Alaska Anchorage, with free parking.
For the Mat-Su, transportation news includes seven Glenn Highway projects, work in Big Lake, Bogard Road and Knik Goose Bay Road, among others.
For Anchorage, it includes projects on Abbott, Campbell Airstrip Road, Eagle River, Minnesota Drive, Raspberry Road and much more.
With current information on current and future projects and ambitions, our guests are transportation planners from the Mat-Su Borough and the city of Anchorage, as well as a chief highway engineer from the Alaska DOT.
Get some background. Check out their transportation fair websites for projects and participating agencies, and then give us a call or an email with your trail, rail, bike, bus, or commuting questions and issues.
HOST: Kathleen McCoy
GUESTS:
- Jessica Smith, transportation planner, Mat-Su Borough
- Jamie Acton, transportation planner, Anchorage
- Jim Amundsen, chief highway engineer, Alaska DOT
- Burt Rudolph, People Mover planning manager (Phone guest)
LINKS:
- AMATS: Find a better commute. Linkak.org
- Mat-Su Transportation Fair, Sept. 22.2016, website
- Anchorage Transportation Fair, Feb. 15, 2017, website
- AMATS, homepage
- Forum: Commuting between the Valley and Anchorage, Alaska Outdoors
- Bike Anchorage
PARTICIPATE:
- Call 550-8433 (Anchorage) or 1-888-353-5752  (statewide) during the live broadcast (2:00 – 3:00pm)
- Send email to hometown@alaskapublic.org before, during or after the live broadcast (e-mails may be read on air) hometown@alaskapublic.org
- Post your comment or question below (comments may be read on air)
- LIVE BROADCAST: Wednesday, September 14, 2016, 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. (Alaska time)
- REPEAT BROADCAST: Wednesday, September 14, 2016, 8:00 – 9:00 p.m. (Alaska time)
- SUBSCRIBE: Get Hometown, Alaska updates automatically — via email, RSS or podcasts.
