I am appalled by the Department of Transportation proposal for Interstate 93 through Concord. The visual and economic blight of the present roadway will only be worsened.
There is no simple, easy solution to the very complex traffic patterns and volume, with 11 major highways either passing through or ending in Concord. All have some impact on I-93.
Manchester and Nashua have similar highway traffic, but neither has so many major highways converging in the center of the city along the Merrimack River.
In Manchester, I-93 and much of I-293 bypass the downtown area. U.S. 3 and N.H. 28, N.H. 28A, N.H. 101 and N.H. 114 have convenient access to I-93 and I-293 for through travelers. Access to the airport is provided by a ramp from the Everett Turnpike. Only a 4-mile section of I-293 in West Manchester denies access to the Merrimack.
There is no interstate highway in Nashua, only the Everett Turnpike, which bypasses the downtown area and the Merrimack River. A short section of U.S. 3 together with N.H. 101A, N.H. 111, N.H. 111A and N.H. 130 have access to the turnpike for through travelers.
Expanding I-93 in Concord to eight or more lanes will deny any access forever to the Merrimack. Any bypass solution would be prohibitively expensive in construction, land acquisition and mitigation cost.
An expensive but affordable solution: a two-tube multi-lane cut-and-cover tunnel with appropriate ramps for local connections and to I-393. It would begin just beyond the railroad right of way east of the South Main Street interchange, ending at and keeping the I-393 interchange.
GILMAN SHATTUCK
Hillsborough