MIDLAND, Texas — As the saying goes, everything is bigger in Texas. Sometimes, things get so big that they stretch outside the state.
That's the idea with the I-14 corridor. It's something that Sen. Ted Cruz has been working on and discussed during his recent visit to Midland.
The goal is to have the interstate stretch all the way from Midland-Odessa to the Atlantic Ocean, going through Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia.
While the interstate would impact all of those states, its importance to Texas can't be overstated.
"It’s a big deal for west Texas and the whole state of Texas," Cruz said. "It’s a big deal to be able to move goods and services, to be able to move the output from the incredible shale revolution we’re seeing that the Permian is driving, that Midland and Odessa is driving."
However, its impact extends beyond the oil and gas industry. Other aspects of life will be impacted as well.
"It also makes a difference for farmers and ranchers in the ag community," Cruz said. "It enables us to move crops and livestock, but it also provides economic development. The path of I-14 goes through some rural areas where this will be a lifeblood in terms of the population living in those rural areas."
When it comes to funding this project, he believes that transportation funds should be used for just that, transportation.
"I believe transportation dollars should go where the need is, where the traffic is, and where the commerce is, and it is clear what’s happening in west Texas is benefiting all of Texas," Cruz said. "It’s benefiting the entire country, and I’m very proud that we were able to get a big legislative win for the Permian Basin."
However, the project is still quite a ways away from being completed.
"There’s still additional funding that will come from the state, from the federal government, and so the process of building it will take many years," Cruz said. "The nature of how interstates get constructed, that is an ongoing process."