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Cullen appointed to transit committee

MADISON — Sen. Tim Cullen has been appointed to a panel that has a major say in highway project funding.

The Janesville Democrat said he would use his seat on the Transportation Projects Commission to promote the Interstate 90/39 widening project.

The commission recommends to the governor and Legislature which major highway projects should be included in the state budget.

The commission last October recommended that the next state budget include the widening of the 45-mile segment of Interstate 90/39 from the Illinois state line to Madison. Construction has been set to start in 2015 with expected completion in 2021.

Questions have arisen, however, about whether that Interstate project might be delayed because of funding problems.

Cullen has supported the Interstate project and said in a statement Tuesday that he would use his seat on the commission to promote the project's "timely completion."

The commission includes five state senators, five state representatives and three citizen members. The governor is the commission's chairman.

Cullen was nominated to the post by Senate Democratic Leader Chris Larson, and Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald appointed him. Other members of the commission were not immediately known.

In the Senate, Cullen is the ranking Democrat on the Committee on Insurance and Housing and also sits on the education committee.