New transmission facilities, new power plants, energy conservation, energy efficiency and increased use of renewable energy sources are all needed to respond to the region's energy challenges. Because transmission forms the backbone of the power system, bottlenecks, i.e., limited movement of electricity, in the transmission system cause reliability concerns which can trigger a review by ISO New England (ISO NE). ISO NE plans and operates New England's bulk electric system and oversees regional electric system planning.

The need for upgrades in the region was first identified by ISO NE in a 2004 transmission study.  The study revealed a number of reliability issues for Southern New England.  The Interstate Reliability Project emerged as one of four integrated projects - known as New England East West Solution (NEEWS) - to strengthen the ability to transfer electricity between Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut.

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.