Sen. Hanger Working to Fund Improvements of the I-81 Corridor in Staunton/Augusta Area

With Virginia representatives in Richmond for the 2023 General Assembly session, Augusta County’s Senator Emmett Hanger (R) has been working on a number of legislative issues for citizens in his District and beyond.

Perhaps one of the most important issues to those of us who live along the heavily traveled I-81, where wrecks are often a daily occurrence, and an issue of great priority to Sen. Hanger, is the improvement of this important artery through western Virginia. From his legislative update:

“This is an issue I have prioritized for years because of the safety and congestion concerns that impact our everyday life of those who live near or travel the corridor.

“The Senate is providing an additional $250M for high priority capital improvement projects in and around the Staunton area and along the interstate to help with delays, prevent crashes, as well as provide jobs to expedite this work.

“This is in addition to the $1B (yes, that is $1 Billion with a “B”) in bond funding made possible by the omnibus transportation bill that I co-patroned back in 2020 (SB890). With that landmark legislation, I aggressively worked to ensure funding was slated for shovel to ground projects.

“Over my time in the Senate, I have pushed for additional lanes and safety improvements to the south of Staunton, and now it is imperative that we move forward with these critical projects here in our backyard.”

Background:

-VDOT: Interstate 81 Widening in Staunton Area

-VDOT: I-81 Corridor Improvement Program