I-81 coalition forms in Va. to improve safety, reduce congestion | Aggregate, Excavation, Dump Truck Company

Interstate 81 at Harrisonburg, Virginia. Photo by Ben Schumin, SchuminWeb, at Wikimedia Commons

A group of regional chambers of commerce in Virginia are banding together to try to get improvements to Interstate 81.

The coalition wants traffic relief and a safer highway, as accidents and truck and passenger-vehicle volumes increase, according to the Augusta Free Press newspaper.

The coalition says the need is urgent and congressional and legislative leaders must secure funding.

The Improve I-81 Chamber Coalition consists of the Greater Augusta Regional Chamber, the Front Royal-Warren County Chamber of Commerce, the Shenandoah County Chamber of Commerce, the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce and the Top of Virginia Regional Chamber.