Texas' Plan To Rip Off Motorists

You may have read about the new 85 mph speed limit the state of Texas has approved for a 41 mile stretch of a new toll road between Austin and San Antonio. It is the highest approved speed limit in the United States. The state has said they conducted "studies" that show the new speed limit is safe. Consumer groups disagree. And a 2009 report in the American Journal of Public Health showed that the 1995 repeal of federal speed limits had resulted in a 3.2% increase in traffic deaths (amounting to an additional 12,500 deaths between 1995 and 2005).

Those additional deaths were caused by raising the speed limit from 55 mph to 70 mph. You can imagine the additional number of deaths that will be caused by raising it from 70 mph to 85 mph. The truth is that no matter how many people like the new speed limit, it just makes no sense safety-wise. So why is the state of Texas doing it?

The simple answer is money. There is a new toll road with expensive tolls, and the builders are afraid no one will want to pay those tolls. So what do they do? They offer the state a fee of $100 million (and a cut of the tolls), with one stipulation -- raise the speed limit to 85 mph (they would have only paid $67 million for a raise to 80 mph). And the state's Republican leaders jumped at the chance to soak the consumers (and with the ability to deny raising taxes). Safety was only a secondary concern (if a concern at all).

And then the state went further in their effort to force motorists onto the new toll road. They lowered the speed limit from 65 mph to 55 mph on the roads running parallel to the new toll road -- creating a difference of a full 30 mph between the free roads and the pay road.

It's all about money. The Republicans are very pious in saying they won't raise taxes on Texas citizens. But that doesn't mean they don't have dozens of other ways to pry money out of the wallets of Texans. The new toll road is just one of them, and the new speed limit is motivated solely by greed -- by the private consortium who built the toll road and by the Republican leaders in Austin.

Taxation - Republican Style

Many years ago, when I was a child, the freeway now called I-30 was built between Dallas and Fort Worth. But it was not a freeway when it was built -- it was a toll road. Tolls were collected until the money spent to build it was repaid and then the toll booths were removed and it became a freeway. Everyone recognized that those tolls that were collected for a few years were nothing more than a tax levied on those using the road -- a tax designated for a particular purpose.

That road was built by state Democrats, and they kept their word by ceasing to collect the tax once the road's costs had been recovered. But Republicans rule this state now, and they do things a little differently. They still build toll roads, but the tax levied on those who use those toll roads don't go to the state anymore. They go to a private corporation -- a private foreign corporation -- which uses those taxes to fatten their own bank accounts.

A few years ago, Governor Perry wanted to build a huge tollway running the north-south length of Texas. The tollway would be built and operated by a Spanish company (Cintra), who would collect tolls for at least 50 years -- while the state would be responsible for repairs and even paying Cintra if collections fell below expected levels. It was a ridiculous idea and it was stopped by the citizens of Texas.

At the time I had hoped that such ridiculous schemes were a thing of the past. Not so. The Republicans were able to get a tollway approved in Tarrant County (Fort Worth), and while it was needed, it certainly doesn't look like a good deal for taxpayers. The idea was originally that the Spanish company would build the road with their own funds and then collect the tolls until about 2061 to turn their investment into a profit. But it didn't quite work out that way.

It seems that the state still supplied $573 million dollars (while Cintra put in $427 million of its own money, and got about $400 million in federally-backed bonds and another $650 million from a federal government loan). Once the road is built Cintra will collect from $1.20 to $6.50 in tolls for the next 50 years, while the state and county maintains and repairs the road. This was nothing more than a 50 year tax which will be paid to a private foreign company instead of the state. It was a bad deal for Texans, but it was approved and nothing could be done to stop it.

Now it seems the idiots in the Republican-dominated state legislature wants to resume doing these kinds of deals -- giveaways of state roads for the enrichment of private corporations. They are considering bills that would approve other tollways -- where a private corporation would build and partially pay for a road in exchange for the right to collect tolls (taxes) for the next 50 years. Then once the road is worn out, it would revert back to the state to be rebuilt (or resold to the same or another corporation).

The state does need some new roadways, especially in the urban areas. But it would make a lot more sense to raise the gas tax and make these roads free for all drivers and still under state ownership. Our infrastructure should not be leased off to private corporations.

But the Republicans promised not to raise taxes, so they instead will lease out state roads and let private corporations charge exorbitant tolls. These are nothing more than taxes, but the Republicans can say they kept their word by calling them tolls and watching the money go into corporate coffers instead of the state's treasury.

Democrats might raise some state taxes, but they would not give state roads to private companies and would keep the money raised by those taxes for the benefit of the people of Texas. Republicans on the other hand, give away the roads and the taxes to corporations. Frankly, this makes no sense and I can't see how the people of Texas are benefitted (except for Republican legislators who will probably get large campaign donations).

Republicans might not call this taxation, but that's what it is. It's just a shame these taxes won't help most Texans. And state infrastructure should not be owned or controlled by private corporations. What will the Republicans do after they've sold the state to corporate interests -- start selling the people too?

TxDOT Lies Are Exposed

For months now, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has been trying to tell the citizens of Texas that they have a budget shortfall, and cannot build the highways necessary without turning many of our freeways into toll roads and giving them to private corporations.

They have even spent state money on publicists to try and convince voters of this. Then they said they had a shortfall of funds and put many planned road projects on hold. They blamed the budget shortfall on a lack of expected state and federal funds.

Now the truth comes out. The problem was due to their own internal communications. They admitted they had three different officials estimating funds they would receive, and wound up double-counting several sources. But that only accounted for $1.1 billion.

State Senator Judith Zaffirini (D-Laredo) said she believes TxDOT has invented the budget crunch as a ploy to put pressure on legislators to allow more building of private toll roads. She points out the legislature gave TxDOT $23 billion in the last session -- $7.5 billion more than the previous legislature. Senators also pointed out that TxDOT has not used billions of dollars in bonds approved by voters.

The truth is there is NO NEED FOR PRIVATE TOLL ROADS in Texas. The supposed need was just a lie concocted by state Republican leaders and promoted by TxDOT officials. It's just a money-making scheme (probably full of kick-backs) to enrich their corporate buddies.

It is time for new leadership at the top levels of TxDOT. But we need to go even further. We also need to replace the state Republican leadership that put these nuts into those positions. The whole thing stinks of corruption.

We can make a good start on this by electing more Democrats to the state legislature this November.

Gas Tax Should Be Raised Significantly

There is no doubt that the roads and bridges in Texas and the United States are in need of serious repair. For the last few years, Republicans both on the state and national level have been only interested in cutting taxes for their rich friends, and have ignored our crumbling infrastructure.

Now we are left with overcrowded highways full of potholes and bridges on the verge of collapse. It is obvious that something must be done.

A congressional committee was assigned to determine what should be done. The National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission has now reported its findings. Like it or not, this committee says we must bite the bullet and raise the national gas tax by 25-40 cents a gallon. The federal tax is currently 18.4 cents a gallon.

They further said the states should also raise their portion of the gas tax. Currently, Texas has a 20 cent a gallon tax.

The committee is right. We cannot ignore our infrastructure any longer. I believe we should raise both the federal and the state gas tax by 25 cents a gallon for each.

This would add 50 cents to the cost of a gallon of gas, but it is needed. However, I would couple this rise in the gas tax with an absolute ban on new toll roads, including the Trans-Texas Corridor.

Of course our Republican leadership is howling over the proposed gas tax hikes. They would like voters to believe they are opposed to taxes being raised. That is a lie.

They are not opposed to imposing new taxes on Texas and United States citizens. They just want to hide their tax raise by calling it a toll, and funneling it into the pockets of rich corporations instead of using it to build new (free) roads and repairing older roads and bridges.

The truth is that their hidden toll tax would actually cost ordinary citizens more than an honest raising of the gas tax, and it would provide less in the repairing and modernizing of our infrastructure.

It is time to stop believing the Republican lies while paying their exorbitant hidden taxes. It is time to significantly raise the gas tax, ban all new toll roads and rebuild our infrastructure.

Hearings To Begin On Trans-Texas Corridor

The public is finally going to get a little bit of say about the massive construction boondoggle the Republicans (and some Democrats) are trying to foist on the citizens of Texas. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) will have a series of public hearings soon on the Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC).

The TTC is the name given to 4,000 miles of new toll roads that would criss-cross the state. Through imminent domain, it would gobble up over 500,000 acres of prime Texas farm and ranch land. It would also turn over the control of these new toll roads to foreign companies, who would reap the benefits of exorbitant tolls on Texans for at least the next 50 years.

The Republican leadership in Austin have already reached secret agreement with at least one foreign corporation -- a Spanish company called Cintra. This secret contract would not only turn over the road to the Spanish company for 50 years to collect tolls, but if they don't make the windfall profits they expect then the Texas taxpayers must make up the difference. In other words, those windfall profits are guaranteed by our tax dollars.

State leaders would like for Texans to believe that this is the only way for Texas to get new roads. That is a lie. What they don't tell Texans is that raising the gas tax could fund new FREE highways at a much cheaper cost than the tolls that would be charged.

The TTC is a very bad deal for the citizens of Texas. It would be great for foriegn corporations and the politicians on their payroll, but this $200 billion boondoggle would bleed the citizens of Texas dry.

Do you want to turn our highways over to foreign countries? Do you want to have to pay exorbitant tolls to drive across our state? If not, then you must speak out now.

But even more important, you must vote the TTC supporters out in the next election (most of whom are Republicans). Before you vote for a state senator or representative, make sure they don't support the massive TTC scheme to rob the citizens of Texas.

Here are the scheduled public hearings:

1/15 - Texarkana

1/16 - Carthage

1/17 - Lufkin

1/22 - Hempstead

1/23 - Huntsville

1/24 - Rosenburg

1/28 - Bellville

1/29 - Victoria

1/31 - Weslaco

2/5 - Laredo

2/6 - Robstown

TxDOT Running Out Of Money ?

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) says it is having "cash flow" problems, and is threatening to delay $900 million of construction projects statewide. They cite rising construction costs and $600 million in federal funds that have been cut.

Frankly, after their recent actions, I'm not at all sure I trust TxDOT anymore. If they are so short of funds, why are they wasting $7 to $9 million dollars on a public relations campaign to sell the idea of toll roads, which they would then turn over to private companies? Wouldn't this money be better spent on our state roads and highways?

We have already seen that they're willing to make secret contracts with private foreign companies to take thousands of acres of prime Texas land and build a huge toll road (the Trans-Texas Corridor boondoggle). Are they telling us the whole truth now?

I don't doubt they don't have the money to build all the roads they would like to build. But I suspect the $900 million construction delay of roads already approved is just a heavy-handed attempt to blackmail Texans into accepting the private toll roads they want.

While all these private toll roads would create windfall profits for the corporate buddies of our Republican state leadership, it would be a very bad deal for ordinary Texans. Our state has a proud history of having one of the best FREE road systems in the nation. But since they came to power, the Republicans have been far more interested in cutting taxes for the rich and filling corporate bank accounts than in keeping our road system up-to-date.

Now they not only want to build new toll roads for private companies, they also want to turn many of our freeways into toll roads and give them away to private corporations. The whole fiendish plot is insane!

If more funds are needed, then the gas tax should be raised. At present, the state gas tax is 20 cents. While it would not be pleasant, a raise in the gas tax would actually be cheaper on Texas drivers than the many proposed toll roads. But they don't want Texans to know that, because then they couldn't give our roads to their corporate buddies.

Don't let TxDOT and their Republican masters blackmail you into accepting private toll roads. Vote these people out of office as soon as possible. Elect people who will replace TxDOT leaders and keep our roads open to all Texans.

Lawsuit Filed Against TxDOT

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has run into more opposition in it's bid to build new toll roads and turn existing freeways into toll roads, and then give them to private corporations. Thank goodness! This effort by state Republican leadership would be bad for all Texans, except for the filthy rich and the corporate bosses.

Yesterday, Texans Uniting for Reform and Freedom (TURF) filed suit against TxDOT in a Travis County civil court. The lawsuit asks for a Temporary Restraining Order to stop TxDOT from lobbying Congress to allow toll roads and to stop TxDOT from spending public money to advertise for privatized toll roads, including the Trans Texas Corridor (TTC).

TURF believes that TxDOT is breaking Texas law by using public money to advertise a political position and to lobby Congress to support their position on turning our freeways into private toll roads. They have already asked Travis County District Attorney Ronnie Earle to investigate TxDOT's illegal activities.

TURF founder Terri Hall says, "Between TxDOT's PR campaign, report to Congress asking that all limitations on tolling be lifted including buying back existing interstates, and chairman Ric Williamson's recent trip to D.C. lobbying for the same, it's clear they've not only crossed the line into illegal lobbying, but they leaped over it. The citizens of Texas are fed up with TxDOT's blatant disregard for the public's disdain of toll roads and their infinite attempts to cram toll roads down our throats using TAXPAYER MONEY to do it! It's high time someone puts a stop to it!"

I hope TURF succeeds in their lawsuit. It's bad enough they want to build new toll roads and put tolls on our freeways and turn them all over to private corporations. It's utterly asinine to spend public money to advertise it and lobby Congress.

We have got to vote these Republican corporate lackeys out of office in 2008. Vote to keep corporate hands off our roads and out of our wallets.

Hutchison Does Something Right

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has come up with some stupid ideas in the past, but their newest idea may be the worst of all. They want to have the authority to pay the federal government back for the money they put into building some existing Texas freeways, and then turn those freeways into TOLL ROADS. They have to have lost their tiny minds!

Then they want to turn those toll roads over to private companies, so they can gouge the people of Texas to drive on roads they paid to build. This is not just a silly idea -- it is outrageous! How long are the people of Texas going to put up with these idiots? Every TxDOT management official should be terminated, and every elected official who had anything to do with appointing them should be booted out of office in the next election.

Our state Republican leadership has always chosen to enrich corporations at the expense of ordinary Texans, but this idea of giving our freeways to private corporations is way over the line. This idea needs to be stopped right now before it can go any further.

Fortunately, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison does not agree with TxDOT's mad scheme. I'm not a big fan of Senator Hutchison, but this time she's acting to protect the citizens of Texas. As they say, even a broken clock is right twice a day, and this is one of those times for Hutchison.

Senator Hutchison has introduced S2019 in the Senate. If it becomes law, this bill would:

* Prohibit collecting tolls on any federal highway already constructed (that is not already a tollway).

* Prohibit collecting tolls on any federal highway bought back by a state after the bill becomes law.

* Include the toll prohibition to all bridges and tunnels on the interstate highway system.

This is a good bill. I commend Senator Hutchison for introducing it, and I hope she can get it passed. The only thing that could make it better is if it prohibited construction of the Trans-Texas Corridor -- now that would be a great bill!

Toll Roads Are Not The Solution

I think everyone believes that Texas needs more and better roads and highways. At one time, Texas had one of the best road systems in the nation. That is no longer true.

The question is not whether we need to build new roads and improve existing roads. We do. The question is how do we pay for the new roads and improvements.

Our governor and his cohorts think the answer is to privitize much of our road system. They want to let corporations build the roads and then own them for 50 years or more, charging Texans to drive on what should be their own roads. These corporations would be guaranteed enormous profits. If the tolls don't provide these profits (because many would not be able to afford them), then the state would be obligated to pay the corporations out of our tax funds. This is just a very bad deal for ordinary Texans.

The reason our politicians want to let corporations build and profit from our road system is because they are too gutless to solve the problem themselves. They think if they raise the gas tax to cover the costs of new roads, the public will be angry and won't re-elect them. I believe they are misjudging the people of Texas.

It is true that Texans got angry when the gas companies raised the prices recently and recorded enormous record-breaking windfall profits. The reason they were angry is because they knew they were being gouged and were receiving nothing for the huge increase in price.

Our legislators are afraid to raise the gas tax 10-12 cents a gallon. In truth, I believe that Texans would accept an even larger jump in the gas tax - as long as it all went to pay for much-needed new roads and improvements, and to avoid the imposition of more toll roads.

If after raising the gas tax we still need to build some toll roads, then the state should build those roads. There are some things that just should not be privatized, and roads are one of those things. They are too important to all Texans.

Years ago, a new roadway was needed between Dallas and Fort Worth, but funds were tight then as they are now. It was built and operated as a toll road. However, when enough money was collected to pay for building the road, they tore down the toll booths and made it a freeway (I-30). If we must have a toll road, it should only be to pay the building costs - not to put enormous profits into some corporation's pockets.

Private roads are a bad idea. It is time our legislators solved the problems we elected them to solve, and stop trying to sell us out to the corporations.

State Pays 31 Cents To Collect 25 Cents In Tolls

The Texas Department of Transportation [TxDOT] looks silly again today, but considering their actions over the last couple of years, they're probably used to that now.

Last month, they started collecting tolls on the new toll road just north of the DFW metroplex -- Texas 121. The new toll road does not have collection booths. If you don't have a toll tag, the system just takes a picture of your license plate and then mails you a bill. I guess this might work out for people who drive a good distance, but what about those who drive only a short distance on the toll road?

Recently, 72-year old Don Ferguson received his bill from TxDOT for using the toll road -- it was a bill for 25 cents. The problem with this is that it cost the state 30.8 cents to mail the bill, and Mr. Ferguson is not the only person this has happened to. Several people have complained of receiving a 25 cent bill in a metered envelope costing 30.8 cents to mail, including TxDOT spokesman Mark Ball. When these people pay their fee, the state of Texas will have lost nearly 6 cents on each transaction.

Just think, what if most drivers on Texas 121 go only a short distance? Could the state actually lose more in postage than it collects in fees? Even worse, is this the level of competence we can expect on other toll roads being planned?

City, County & State Want New Toll Lanes On I-35W

Anyone who lives in or near Tarrant county knows that Interstate 35W north of downtown has been inadequate for the traffic it carries for several years now. It only has two lanes, and it needs to have at least two more [making a total of four lanes going each way].

When Tarrant county got a huge multi-million dollar bond proposal passed earlier this year, they said part of the money would be to "fix I-35W". I thought at the time this meant they would widen the freeway, and I'm sure a lot of others thought the same. After all, that is the "fix" that is needed. But we were wrong. Evidently the money was just for repairs and not for widening the freeway. I still think they were misleading when trying to get the bond proposal passed.

Now they are doing something even worse. Fort Worth and Tarrant county officials have joined with state officials to push a proposal that would widen I-35W and Loop 820 with new TOLL LANES! It's not bad enough that these officials support that boondoggle called the Trans-Texas Corridor, now they want to build new toll lanes inside the county.

It seems like these officials never pass up an opportunity to squeeze another dollar out of their constituents. What do they have against poor and working folks? Do they just not like us, or just can't be bothered with thinking about us?

I'm sure these officials have plenty of money to throw around and spend on taking a toll road. After all, you pretty much have to be well-off to even run for political office these days. But there are lots of working people who really can't afford the extra expense of taking a toll road to work and back. They're still going to be crammed into the two existing lanes, while the rich speed by in the new toll lanes.

The working people pay most of the taxes, and they deserve to have a decent way to get to and from work. But it seems that everything the city, county and state does nowdays is geared toward helping the rich. Widening I-35W and Loop 820 is badly needed, but it is ridiculous and unfair to do it by adding toll lanes.

If we need to raise the gas tax a little to pay for new and improved roads, then we should do it. That would be a lot cheaper for most people than toll roads. This is just a bad idea, and it should be stopped before it gets any further.