Wilton First Selectman Bill Brennan calls last week’s move by the head of the state Senate to secure funding for a study on the feasibility of a “superhighway” from Norwalk to Danbury a case of sheer politics and “a senseless waste of taxpayer dollars.”

State Rep. Toni Boucher of Wilton has been a vocal opponent of Super 7. She called the idea a “Don Quixote windmill dream” and blasted Senator Bob Duff of Norwalk for his continued attempts to make Super 7 a reality. “It seems to us in Wilton that he wants to stick it to Wilton just as a matter of his own principle,” said Ms. Boucher.

“He does not represent Wilton, Ridgefield, or Redding. Yet he is embarking on a study that only impacts us as towns,” she added. She said the study was not being done by the Department of Transportation and “there is no mandate that either puts it in place or requires anyone to do anything with it.”

Ms. Boucher, a Republican who represents a district made up of parts of Wilton and Norwalk, called the study a waste of taxpayer money and asked for the Democrats to reconsider. “I would implore the Democrats from our town to talk with and communicate with their leadership up there if this is a concern to them,” said Ms. Boucher.

Senator Bob Duff of Norwalk and the Senate President Pro Tempore Donald E. Williams Jr., of Brooklyn, Conn., both Democrats, agreed a study should be funded to see if there should be a “superhighway,”  or Super 7 in this region of the state, their statement said.

Super 7, the long controversial four-lane highway plan, has been proposed and shelved as a state project over the last five decades. The idea was most recently revived this past spring by Senator Duff, but the concept died in committee when the General Assembly’s Transportation Committee failed to act. Mr. Williams and Mr. Duff said that funding should be secured within the coming weeks.

Mr. Duff has been a leading advocate for the “Super 7” expressway. A provision for a Department of Transportation study for an alternative to the current Route 7 connector was included in the bond package that was vetoed in October. It wasn’t in the bond package that was approved on Oct. 31.

Mr. Brennan said in a written statement to The Bulletin this week that “Don Williams, Democratic president of the Senate, threw Bob Duff a crumb of political support by agreeing to fund a private Super 7 highway study from ‘discretionary funds’! This was clearly a political initiative to placate Bob Duff’s obsession for a superhighway, which has been officially rejected repeatedly in the past by the Connecticut legislature and the governor’s office.” (See full statement on page 6A.)

Senator Duff said on Tuesday details such as how much money the study would cost and how long it would take still needed to be worked out, but that he was “even more anxious to get Super 7 completed than before.” “I’d prefer the money be used to put shovels in the ground,” said Mr. Duff.

When asked if he expects to revive the Super 7 concept once again in the next legislative session, Mr. Duff said that would depend upon the results of the study. He said the study was “completely appropriate” because the last time a traffic study was done for Super 7 was 1993. He said he was pleased the issue was getting attention once again and thanked Senator Williams for his assistance.

“This shows it’s clearly on his radar now and he’s supportive of our efforts to continue to raise this issue,” said Mr. Duff.

The study is expected to include an engineering analysis; a time frame for construction completion; identification of physical, social or environmental obstacles; cost estimates; and potential sources of funding for the project.

“I am committed to securing the funding to study the Route 7 connector,” said Mr. Williams in the release. “If this is a viable option for reducing traffic congestion and improving the safety of a high-volume road, then it’s imperative that we have a complete and accurate evaluation of what roadway construction will entail. This is an important project for Senator Duff and his constituents in Norwalk and Darien, and I have agreed to support his efforts.”

But even with the study, Ms. Boucher said she remains confident the project will not move forward.

“They cannot do it unless it goes through the Transportation Committee,” said Ms. Boucher, who serves on that committee. “I know that certainly on our House of Representatives side there is no interest in this whatsoever.”

Mr. Brennan called Super 7 an “obsession” of Mr. Duff’s and that the study will ultimately have “no credibility.”

“I think this whole thing is more of a publicity stunt for the glory of Bob Duff. He’s an elected official — you would think he would act more responsibly,” said Mr. Brennan. “In my opinion, it’s politics at its worst.”

Instead of Super 7, Mr. Brennan suggested improvements on the Danbury-Norwalk rail line were in order. “It’s been promised for a long, long time,” said Mr. Brennan.

State Senator Judith Freedman, who represents Wilton, Redding and Ridgefield, did not return a call for comment.

The current Route 7 widening project in Wilton from Wolfpit Road to Olmstead Hill Road was meant as a compromise to “Super 7” that was protested against by officials in Wilton. The project should end in 2010. Around that time, Route 7 between the Norwalk line and Wolfpit Road would be straightened to improve traffic flow, transportation officials have said.