Missoula, MT (KGVO-AM News) – Following his visits to the Missoula airport, the CSKT Reservation, and lots of travel time seeing the beauty of western Montana, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg granted me an exclusive nearly 13-minute live in-studio interview in the KGVO Radio studio on Wednesday afternoon.

Secretary Buttigieg first described his reaction to the additions to the Missoula Airport, including the many new carriers recently added to carry travelers around the nation and the world.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg Provides an Exclusive Live Interview

“The added capacity at the airport means more airlines and more flights can serve this region,” began Buttigieg. “That means helping to keep air fares under control, because I know affordability is a real concern. So seeing that we were not just creating a better day-to-day experience, but a more competitive landscape was really encouraging for us. The other thing I loved seeing there is that the first phase of that project came in under budget, which is what I’d love to see more of because usually with infrastructure, it tends to happen in the opposite direction.”

Secretary Buttigieg also referenced his visit to see the planned expansion project between Missoula and East Missoula.

Buttigieg Praised the Project Linking Missoula to East Missoula

“Everything we’re doing is going to make a difference in day-to-day life,” he said. “The Safe Streets for All Grant that we’re working with Missoula and funding to connect East Missoula even though it’s only three miles away, is really cut off by the way that the highways run,” he said. “That’s a big project for us, too. It’s on my radar, even though it’s one of many in that program because we really believe that that part of what we can do with our generation’s worth of infrastructure is make sure that it really is connecting and not what you had sometimes in the past, because dividing a highway shouldn’t stand between you and where you need to be.”

The discussion then led to electric vehicles and the necessary infrastructure needed in a state the size and population of Montana.

“It’s the same way that when you go out on the road now,” he said. “You know there’s going be a gas station when you need it. We’ve got to make sure we get to the same place when it comes to EV (Electric Vehicle) charging. We’re not just urging states to do that; we’re funding states to do that. Every state has submitted a plan, making sure you’d never go more than 50 miles without coming to a charger. It’s going to take a few years to put those up, and this is pretty new for us as a country, but we got to make sure we get that done.”

READ MORE: Dangerous U.S. 93 Gets Big Dollar Fix North of Missoula

Buttigieg said Eastern Montana Can Look Forward to More Electric Vehicles

Secretary Buttigieg gave his view on how people in lightly populated eastern Montana might be able to look forward to having more electric vehicles.

“People here are more likely to live in single-family homes which means you already have some kind of charging infrastructure in the form of a plug in the wall,” he said. “That’s what we do at our house in Michigan. But also, the more you drive, the longer distances you cover, and the more of your money you’re spending on gas and diesel; you’ll find it’s cheaper to fill up a car with electricity than it is with gas and diesel. Provided we can make sure that the chargers are there when you need them, which is a big project for us, and also keep fighting to get the sticker price of those EVs down. I think there are a lot of people in these less dense areas who are going to find it’s the right answer.”

CNA Newsroom, May 8, 2024 / 08:00 am

Montana’s Catholic bishops have issued a joint letter denouncing a proposed pro-abortion constitutional amendment they say would pave the way for late-term abortions, partial-birth abortions, and an elimination of the state’s parental notification requirement for minors in Montana.

In their May 3 letter, the bishops called the initiative an attack on the “recognition of the infinite dignity enjoyed by all persons” that fails to respect “life as a precious gift from God and recognize our sacred duty to nurture and protect every human life.”

“This recognition of the infinite dignity enjoyed by all persons informs our understanding of the basic rights and protections to which all human beings are entitled,” the letter stated. “When those rights are threatened, the Church must speak up with clarity and boldness.”

The statement — signed by Bishop Austin Vetter of Helena and Bishop Jeffrey Fleming and Bishop Emeritus Michael Warfel of Great Falls-Billings — urged Catholics in the state to refrain from signing the petition and to pray for the initiative’s defeat.

Montana State Senator Shane Morigeau still remembers the pain of losing a cousin who was killed while walking along Highway 93.

And even though it was decades ago he says that tragedy, and many more are one of the primary reasons to celebrate the funding secured to rebuild the highway through the heart of the Flathead Reservation.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says it’s a prime example of how the bi-partisan Infrastructure Act approved two years ago is such a major step in highway safety.

New Money Puts Missoula Airport Construction on “Home Stretch”

A project long overdue

At a press conference along the highway in Evaro Tuesday, Senator Morigeau, and Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Chair Michael Dolson thanked Buttigieg, and Senator Jon Tester, for working to secure $100 million dollars to finally replace the dangerous, narrow stretch of highway south of Ronan.

“Not only is your work saving lives for us here in this community, but it’s also reducing wildlife collisions with animals such as grizzly bears and moose,” Morigeau said in prepared remarks. “So your work is just so critical for our community when it comes to tourism and safety as well along this highway corridor.”

 “It was in the top 10 highways in the nation for accidents and death,” Dolson noted. “So good to have the projects that are going forward to make it as safe as possible.”

It took cooperation

Buttigieg says the project wouldn’t have been possible without the full cooperation of the tribe and the State of Montana, given a route complicated by wetlands and wildlife.

“Part of that danger is due to outdated surface conditions. Part of it’s due to the lack of a separated protected bike or pedestrian path, especially when you’ve got freight or logging trucks doing 70 miles an hour just a few feet away.”

Lots of money, but more needed for maintenance

While Buttigieg celebrated the investment in roads, and the Missoula Airport, during his visit. He told Peter Christian in a taped appearance on “Talkback” that the states will have to innovate to fill the holes in gas taxes and other funding sources if all the new improvements are to be properly maintained.

“We don’t dictate that and that’s OK. You know what? What makes sense in Montana might be different than what makes sense in in Michigan, where I live, “Buttigieg observed. “But we do need to make sure that we make those investments cause if you don’t, it’s kind of like a leaky roof. You might feel like you’re saving money from year to year by by waiting. But in the end, it’s only going to be that much more expensive.”

We’ll have that full interview with the Transportation Secretary later this week on Talkback.