www.HartfordBusiness.com • December 10, 2018 • Hartford Business Journal 3
Newsmakers
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Moving on up
"I look forward to achieving
the governor-elect's vision for
a budget and policy plan that
addresses Connecticut's fiscal
crisis, spreads out economic
opportunity and helps grow
Connecticut's middle class."
City of Hartford finance chief Melissa McCaw
on her new appointment as the budget director
for Gov.-elect Ned Lamont.
Terri Slack | Vice President and Senior Project Manager, CDM Smith
By Sean Teehan
steehan@hartfordbusiness.com
T
he issue of Connecticut's deteriorating
highways and bridges and the possibility
of installing tolls were front and center
during this year's gubernatorial election. It's also
an issue Terri Slack knows a
thing or two about.
Slack is a national tolling
expert who recently joined
engineering and construc-
tion firm CDM Smith in
Hartford as vice president
and senior project manager.
Her firm made headlines
recently publishing a study
that concluded Connecticut
could reap as much as $1 billion in annual rev-
enues if it adopted statewide highways tolls.
She previously worked as a program manager
for Jacobs Engineering, which served as a gener-
al toll consultant for Washington state's Depart-
ment of Transportation, among other jobs.
After spending much of her career focused on
highway issues, Slack says transportation is the
heart of any government's economic engine.
You have worked on highway issues (including
tolling) in several states. How does the situation
in Connecticut compare with other states where
you've worked?
One thing we all learned, and which I believe
Connecticut is experiencing, is implementing a
toll program is complex.
Whether tolling is in the startup phase as in Con-
necticut, or in a mature phase, such as Pennsylvania,
Illinois, etc., every agency addresses similar issues.
Mature agencies are working to become more ef-
ficient by taking advantage of innovative technology
— e.g. gated systems have been replaced with open
road toll systems. Whether agencies are wrestling
with policy issues or operational issues, I have found
one thing in common: Everyone wants to do good
for the toll customer.
How can highway infrastructure policy affect
businesses in Connecticut?
Transportation and highway infrastructure
policies and funding affect business in Connecti-
cut in many ways.
The health of our economy depends on the sys-
tem's ability to move people and goods efficiently
and cost effectively. If an employee is stuck in
traffic, day in and day out, making them late to
work, that affects their job performance, thus
threatening their employment status.
If a business is located where traffic, especially
accident-inducing traffic, can make it too dif-
ficult to reach, that business suffers.
The more difficult our transportation system
makes it for people to travel safely and efficiently,
and deliver the state's commerce, the more Con-
necticut's economy suffers.
VERBATIM
East Coast tech hub
"This is the start of an era
for Connecticut where we do
believe that this can actually
become a tech hub of the East
Coast, and we think we can
lead that process."
Infosys President Ravi Kumar on the IT giant's
new Hartford tech hub, which recently opened
in downtown Hartford.
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