New Hampshire’s top transportation officials told a chamber of commerce gathering recently that the state’s main north-south highway corridor was unsafe to drive.

Carol Murray, state transportation commissioner, reportedly made the comments during a speech before an event organized by the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce.

Murray, quoted by The Manchester Union-Leader, said, “That highway is not safe to drive as it is today.”

The problem area, as identified by Murray, is the portion of the highway between Manchester, in the southern part of the state, and the border with Massachusetts. That part of the highway is heavily congested, and improvements to widen it may not occur for up to seven to 12 years.