A strong transmission grid is vital to New England's safety, security and economic prosperity. New transmission facilities, new power plants, energy conservation and increased use of renewable energy sources are all part of the solution to the region's energy challenges. Because transmission forms the backbone of the power system, bottlenecks in the transmission system cause reliability concerns. These bottlenecks can also increase customer electric bills because it may be physically impossible to transport less expensive power from one area to another.

The New England electric utility industry is responding to the challenges of reliably serving the future electricity demand with significant investments in infrastructure, as well as other programs that help customers reduce their electricity usage. The Interstate Reliability Project works with the three other related 345-kV transmission projects to improve the east-west movement of electricity within southern New England. This enhanced movement of electricity benefits the reliability of the entire region by allowing larger amounts of power to be moved longer distances.