Regional Transportation Council considers how to pay for rail service

By MICHAEL A. LINDENBERGER - The Dallas Morning News - Thursday, June 12, 2008


If North Texans are going to see a new 251-mile network of suburban rail lines by 2030 – an idea that remains a cherished goal of elected officials and regional transportation leaders – they are going to have to pay for it, and pay steeply.

The project will cost about $9 billion – an amount that would be funded almost entirely by new fees and taxes


The question of what those fees should be took center stage Thursday as the Regional Transportation Council voted to authorize a plan that will cobble together a menu of possible tax increases to pay for what is being called Rail North Texas.

Among the fees that the staff has proposed are higher property taxes, higher vehicle registration fees, a new sales tax on gasoline and a new tax on new car purchases, a new resident impact fee, among others.

Between now and August, council members will meet with Texas lawmakers to find support for a menu that will produce the hundreds of millions of dollars needed each year while drawing the lowest possible amount of opposition from lawmakers and voters alike.

Several elected officials who spoke Thursday said public support for the rail idea has only increased in the wake of worsening traffic and soaring gas prices. But as always, the question came down to how to pay for it.

Plans had initially called for the rail expansion to be paid for by sales tax increases, a funding source that would require legislative approval. That idea – which would allow cities to hold sales tax elections to raise rates above the state cap of 8.25 percent – has failed in each of the past two sessions of the Legislature.

And while the sales tax idea remains officially a possibility, Thursday's action – which followed only cursory discussion – made clear council members have all but given up on winning lawmaker support.

"We've walked into several buzz saws with the sales tax idea, and we have been told that that is not the panacea that is going to get us through Austin," said Fort Worth Councilman Jungus Jordan, who led the planning group behind the idea to request a series of smaller tax increases instead of the sales tax hike.

The decision to seek a menu of easier-to-digest tax or fee increases is smart politics, said Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley. "It's a higher-odds proposition," said Mr. Whitley, who was elected vice-chairman of the RTC Thursday. Dallas City Council members Linda Koop and Ron Natinsky were elected chairwoman and secretary, respectively.

Still, each of the new fees will have their own and in some cases just-as-determined opponents who will have to be outfoxed in Austin, a prospect that has worried even some of the initiative's strongest advocates.

Car dealers, for instance, are hardly eager to support new taxes on vehicle purchases, Mr. Morris and Mr. Whitley each noted.

In the meantime, Mr. Whitley and others said, voters are ready to spend more on transportation – not just in spite of the higher gas prices and worsening traffic, but because of them. "If we don't have transit here eventually, there won't be any economic development," said Collin County Commissioner Joe Jaynes.

Mr. Morris added, "Four-dollar gasoline is really going to require all of us to look at our world in a different way. We may not need to have three or four cars in a single household. It just requires seeing our way forward."

How Represenatives from NCTCOG Region rank on the Environment - 2007 Texas Legislature

By Faith Chatham - DFWRCC - Oct. 20, 2007
Snapshot from Texas League of Conservation Voters Scorecard for 2007 Texas Legislature

A look at the scores Average House score: 56%

Avg. Republican score: 32% F
Avg. Democratic score: 84% A
Perfect 100s: 11
Overachievers (A+): 36
Failures (F): 56
House Republicans over 50%: 2
House Democrats below 50%: 3
Highest Republican score: Kirk England (69%)
Lowest Democratic score: Joe Pickett (37%)

Now that Kirk England has switched parties, that means the highest scoring Republican got less than 69%.
NOTE: BOLD FACE NAMES INDICATE ALL OR PART OF DISTRICT IS IN THE 16 COUNTY DFW REGION (NCTCOG)

At the top:
Burnam, Lon (D) 100% A+
Coleman, Garnet F. (D) 100% A+
Dunnam, Jim (D) 100% A+
Gallego, Pete (D) 100% A+
Howard, Donna (D) 100% A+
Miles, Borris (D) 100% A+
Naishtat, Elliott (D) 100% A+
Oliveira, Rene O. (D) 100% A+
Rodriguez, Eddie (D) 100% A+
Thompson, Senfronia (D) 100% A+
Bolton, Valinda (D) 96% A+
Davis, Yvonne (D) 96%
Escobar, Juan Manuel (D) 96% A+
Farias, Joe (D) 96% A+
Escobar, Juan Manuel (D) 96% A+
Herrero, Abel (D) 96% A+
Hochberg, Scott (D) 96% A+
Hodge, Terri (D) 96% A+
Leibowitz, David McQuade (D) 96% A+
Martinez, Armando (D) 96% A+
Noriega, Richard "Rick" (D) 96% A+
Olivo, Dora (D) 96% A+
Vaught, Allen (D) 96% A+
Veasey, Marc (D) 96% A+
Vo, Hubert (D) 96% A+
Pierson, Paula (D) 95% A+
Allen, Alma (D) 93% A+
Anchia, Rafael (D) 93%
Ortiz Jr., Solomon (D) 93% A+
Strama, Mark (D) 93% A+
Castro, Joaquin (D) 92% A+
Hernandez, Ana (D) 92% A+
Lucio III, Eddie (D) 92% A+
Martinez Fischer, Trey (D) 92% A+
Raymond, Richard (D) 92% A+
Chavez, Norma (D) 91% A+
Gonzalez Toureilles, Yvonne (D) 89% A
Alonzo, Roberto (D) 88% A
Garcia III, Juan (D) 88% A
Mallory Caraway, Barbara (D) 88% A
Moreno, Paul (D) 88% A
Cohen, Ellen (D) 88% A
Farrar, Jessica (D) 87% A
Villarreal, Michael (D) 86% A
Dukes, Dawnna (D) 85% A
Flores, Ismael "Kino" (D) 82% A
McClendon, Ruth (D) 80% A
Quintanilla, Chente (D) 80% A
Giddings, Helen (D) 79% B
Eiland, Craig (D) 78% B
Dutton Jr., Harold V. (D) 77% B
Menendez, Jose (D) 77% B
Frost, Stephen (D) 72% B
England, Kirk (R -switched to D) 69% B
McReynolds, Jim (D) 69% B
Puente, Robert (D) 68% B

Here are NCTCOG (DFW REGIONAL) Incumbents scores which are lower than B:

Hill, Fred (R) 44% D
Mowery, Anna (R) 37% D
Keffer, Jim (R) 35% D
Laubenberg, Jodie Anne (R) 35% D
King, Phil (R) 32% F
Geren, Charlie (R) 31% F
McCall, Brian (R) 31% F
Miller, Sid (R) 31% F
Paxton, Ken (R) 31% F
Patrick, Diane (R) 30% F
Goolsby, Tony (R) 30% F
Harper-Brown, Linda (R) 30% F
Jackson, Jim (R) 30% F
Solomons, Burt R. (R) 29% F
Hancock, Kelly G. 28% F
Zedler, Bill (R) 27% F
Orr, Rob (R) 26% F
Madden, Jerry (R) 27% F
Brown, Fred (R) 26% F
Smith, Todd (R) 26% F
Truitt, Vicki (R) 23% F
Crownover, Myra (R) 23% F
Branch, Dan (R) 22% F
Pitts, Jim (R) 22% F
Hartnett, Will (R) 21% F

See the Scorecard and examine the votes by issues ranked to determine the scores.
Look at previous session's scores.

When examining votes on toll road, there was less difference by party than was reflected by donors. The votes on the environment do reflect distinct party differences. This is sad. Republican voters also need clean air. Republican voters also have to breathe dirty air and children of Republican voters suffer from asthma and allergies at the same rate as children of Democratic voters. We do not know how distinct a difference will be shown when campaign donor bases are examined on a per vote basis by Legislator.

Highway 121 money split - Denton, Collin get most of $3 billion; some in Collin upset

By THEODORE KIM - The Dallas Morning News - Friday, October 12, 2007

ARLINGTON – After years of arm-twisting over the sale of the State Highway 121 toll road, the payoff is finally here.

And while nobody got exactly what they wanted, forgive Denton County for smiling a little more than its neighbor to the east.

On Thursday, the Regional Transportation Council approved the division of the roughly $3 billion payout from the sale of the toll road to surrounding counties.

The decision came despite the grumbling of leaders in Collin County, who said the divisions will shortchange their county out of millions.

At stake is billions of dollars that will be generated almost immediately under the state's deal to sell tolling rights on Highway 121.

Earlier this year, the North Texas Tollway Authority agreed to pay the state $2.5 billion up front and $833 million in additional revenue for the right to collect tolls on the road for the next 50 years.

The council, a 40-member panel of local officials that sets transportation policy, was tasked with dividing that payout among area counties.

Under the plan, the majority of the money was set aside for Denton County, which will receive $1.56 billion, and Collin County, which will get $1.18 billion. The proposal was based in large part on estimates of how many vehicles will use the highway in each county in the future.

Those amounts fall far short of the roughly $9 billion in total requests the counties had initially made to the council for road projects.

Moreover, the counties will actually receive somewhat less because, in part, the earmarks include the cost of finishing Highway 121, slated for completion by decade's end.

Because of that, some officials said they felt the agreement unfairly penalizes Collin County. Denton's segment of the road, funded largely by gasoline-tax revenue, is mostly complete. Collin's half is being built now and will be funded by its portion of the toll-road deal.

Of Collin's payout, about half – $600 million – will help the NTTA finish the project. By comparison, Denton will contribute about $41 million to the project from its payout.

"Why are the construction costs of [Highway] 121 being added to the county's share?" asked Plano City Council member Loretta Ellerbe, the only transportation council member who voted against the plan. "It makes no sense."Thursday's action is the latest development in the closely watched sale of Highway 121, which runs about 30 miles between Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and U.S. Highway 75 near McKinney.

The project has come to symbolize the new and controversial way that communities nationwide are paying for roads and highways.

With gasoline-tax revenue unable to cover growing transportation needs, political leaders here and elsewhere have pioneered the practice of selling long-term tolling rights on roads in exchange for large upfront cash payments.

While others echoed Ms. Ellerbe's dissent, the transportation council said they generally supported the plan.

Member Cynthia White, a Denton County commissioner, encouraged her colleagues to set aside regional biases in favor of curtailing growing traffic across the area.

"All these [road] projects are interdependent," she said.

Another member, Collin County Commissioner Joe Jaynes, said he voted for the plan because in the end it will mean hundreds of millions for new roads.

"Nobody was completely satisfied," Mr. Jaynes said. "I think that's a sign of a good compromise."
Read more in the Dallas Morning News

State Highway 121 Project Agreement Completed

By Sam Lopez nnd Lara Rodriguez - NTTA & NCTCOG - Aug. 23, 2007
North Texas – In the true spirit of teamwork, representatives from the Dallas District of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) and the North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA) have finalized a historic project agreement. The NTTA will develop, finance, design, construct, maintain and operate State Highway (SH) 121 from McKinney to Coppell for the next 50 years. Staff representatives of the Regional Transportation Council (RTC) participated in the negotiation of the major terms of the project agreement and quantified the anticipated public benefit.

Today, the Texas Transportation Commission (TTC) approved a Minute Order authorizing TxDOT’s Executive Director to enter into the project agreement with the NTTA, subject to environmental clearance of Segments 1 through 4 of the SH 121 toll project. That clearance is expected in September 2007.

The SH 121 project agreement has now been signed by Jorge C. Figueredo, NTTA Executive Director, and submitted to TXDOT. When TxDOT’s Executive Director signs the agreement, the NTTA will then have 45 days to achieve the “financial close” and to deliver a $2.5 billion upfront payment to TxDOT. An additional $833 million upfront payment, representing the current value of 49 future annual payments, will be made at TxDOT’s direction to the RTC for regional transportation projects. The RTC has already received proposals from cities and counties and will decide how the $3.3 billion will be used for additional mobility projects throughout North Texas.

“We are nearing the final execution of SH 121 project agreement and I thank all of our partners who have worked tirelessly and expeditiously to complete it,” said Paul N. Wageman, Chairman of the NTTA Board of Directors. “The NTTA looks forward to delivering the upfront payment to TxDOT and the RTC in the near future. The real work begins when our team of designers and contractors complete this critical roadway for Collin, Dallas and Denton counties.”

“The motor fuel tax can no longer keep up with the growth we are experiencing in North Texas and falls short of meeting our transportation needs. TxDOT has a plan to make up the financial shortfall and it involves doing exactly what occurred on SH 121. This included seeking innovative solutions, working with partners like the NTTA and empowering local communities and the RTC to help fill the transportation funding gap," said Bill Hale, P.E., District Engineer, Dallas District of the Texas Department of Transportation.

“This region, like the rest of the nation, is facing a tremendous shortfall in transportation funding,” said Michael Morris, director of transportation of the NCTCOG. “This agreement with NTTA will mean freeway, thoroughfare, passenger rail and air quality projects can be built years ahead of schedule. Keeping up with the tremendous growth and transportation needs of the region is a high priority.”

On June 28, the TTC, the Board that oversees TxDOT, instructed the NTTA and TxDOT staff, in cooperation with the RTC, to prepare a project agreement term sheet within 60 days. The three partners worked diligently to meet the demanding schedule.

The SH 121 toll project is a 25.9 mile all-electronic toll road through Collin, Dallas and Denton counties from McKinney where SH 121 intersects with U.S. 75 west to near the Tarrant County line. Segments 1 and 2 run east from 0.23 miles east of Business 121 to the ramp pair on the east side of the Hillcrest Road overpass. Segment 3 runs east from the ramp pair on the east side of the Hillcrest Road overpass to the ramp pair on the west side of the Watters Road overpass. Segment 4 is the ramp pair on the west side of the Watters Road overpass through the north, east, and south limits of the construction required to complete the U.S. 75/SH 121 Interchange. Segment 5 is the Dallas North Tollway interchange.

Denton commissioner Cynthia White fined for late financial filings

County official missed 3 deadlines but neither raised nor spent funds

By MONTY MILLER JR. - Denton Record-Chronicle - Wed., August 1, 2007

DENTON – County Commissioner Cynthia White was fined $600 for missing three deadlines to file required campaign finance documents, after a Denton County resident filed a complaint against her last month.

The Texas Ethics Commission assessed the fine last week.

"I have been very busy the last year and a half," Ms. White said. "I'll try not to let it happen again."

Dianne Edmondson, Denton County Republican Party chairwoman, said elected officials make mistakes like everyone else, but Ms. White should be more careful in the future.

"I think it must happen fairly often, although it shouldn't happen," she said.

Oak Point resident John Rademacher filed a complaint against Ms. White in late May.

Mr. Rademacher could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

Ms. White, a Republican who is up for re-election next year, filed the missing documents with the Denton County Elections Administration in late May. The documents covered the period between Jan. 15, 2006, and Jan. 15, 2007, and showed that Ms. White had not accepted any contributions or spent any campaign money during that time.

"I didn't have any activity during that period, but I understand that I should have filed them," she said.

Texas law states that elected officials must file campaign finance reports twice a year, whether they raise money or not.

Ms. White said she paid the fine last week.

Tim Sorrels of the Texas Ethics Commission said he could not comment on the case.

Ms. White, of Aubrey, was first elected to the Commissioners Court in 2000.

She said she is running for re-election in 2008 and is raising funds for the campaign.
Read more in the Dallas Morning News

Regional Transportation Council's chairman slowing down to speed things up

By O.K. CARTER - Star-Telegram Staff Writer - Thu, Jul. 05, 2007
North Richland Hills Mayor Oscar Trevino is only 30 days into his role as chairman of the Regional Transportation Council, but he's already discovered that leading the council resembles herding whales: It takes a while, and some whales always wander off in new directions.

Last month's vote to recommend a builder and operator of a future Texas 121 toll road, for example, was 27-10 in favor of the North Texas Tollway Authority, with some of the 10 voicing adamant opposition. Regional transportation issues rarely achieve consensus because interests and needs are so varied.

The council, part of the North Central Texas Council of Governments, is the chief planning agent for future regional transportation needs: highway improvements, toll roads, regional passenger rail and the like. The regional council's 40 members include elected or appointed officials from 16 Metroplex counties, as well as representatives from transportation planners like The T or Dallas Area Rapid Transit. Nothing big in regional transit happens without the regional council's endorsement.

"The process of getting things done in regional transportation is miserably slow, like watching grass grow," the thrice-elected North Richland Hills mayor jokes. It helps that he's also a civil engineer and highway construction expert.

It's already obvious that Trevino's style is to speed up by slowing down, giving council members plenty of time to get their say. His first meeting ran almost four hours. It's a hypothesis that long meetings equal faster projects.

"Letting members have their say and having open civil discussions may result in meetings going a little long," Trevino concedes. "But when everybody can present positions and have them openly debated, even members that don't get things 100 percent their way will know that we hashed it out and gave them a fair shake."Trevino knows that at the same time, the clock is ticking on transportation issues and speeding up projects is crucial.

A recent census study revealed that the percentage of people commuting to work in a vehicle by themselves actually increased by 2 percent over the past five years. The population of the Metroplex is projected to increase 3.5 million over the next three decades.

"More cars and people add to pollution and congestion problems," he said.

Trevino's watch as council chairman did not begin on a cheerful note. A pitch to the Legislature to allow Metroplex residents to vote on a half-cent sales tax to fund regional passenger rail was essentially ignored.

"If transportation planning moves slow, the Legislature moves even slower," Trevino said. "If you want something done in one session, you have to introduce it an earlier session. Basically, all we're asking is that the Legislature allow voters here to make that call."

Without the tax, Trevino sees no way to fund regional rail, which is why one of the top two priorities of his council term will be to organize a more focused and determined legislative lobbying effort two years from now to get lawmakers to allow a vote on a tax.

The other priority? When he hands over his gavel to a new chairman in 11 months, Trevino would love it if the tollway authority had resolved not only the 121 issue, but had also established firm timetables for toll road projects, including a widening of Texas 360 in southeast Tarrant (Arlington/Mansfield), Texas 171 in north Fort Worth and north Tarrant County, and the Southwest Parkway. He'd also like the tollway authority to pick up the pace on a George Bush Freeway extension and the Dallas Trinity Parkway project.

"It's also obvious that [the Texas Department of Transportation] is going to have to recognize that it's going to have to take care of some mobility issues without assistance from tolls, including problems on I-35, Loop 820, S.H.183 and the downtown funnel," Trevino said, though with a proviso: He favors construction of toll-funded express lanes on 820.

That's much to do with less than a year to do it.

O.K. Carter's column appears Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Read more

Lt. Gov. Dewhurst and the Texas Transportation Commission affirms RTCs recommendation of NTTA for SH 121 Project

By Faith Chatham - June 28, 2007
Shortly before noon, the Texas Transportation Commission voted and approved NTTA for the SH121 toll project. Of the five commissioners, 4 voted for NTTA. The motion stipulates that TxDOT and NTTA are to negotiate a firm contract within 60 days. NTTA will take that contract to their bonding agents and submit it to the Attorney General for approval. Within 45 days of the signing of that contract, NTTA is to pay the unfront payment or the agreement is null and void.

The RTC and NTTA will negotiate and come to agreements on what other projects NTTA is going to deliver in the region.

Michael Morris, Transportation Director for the North Central Texas Council of Government stated the region's case for NTTA. Morris said: "Members of the RTC decided to have faith in ourselves. In our own region we have a public toll authority with a sound system which has twice the value of outstanding debt, and SH 121 is located in the fastest growing sector of the region. In selecting NTTA we have decided to have faith in ourselves."

Commissioners carefully weighed the differences between the Cintra contract and the NTTA proposal. Cintra's contract is ready to sign. NTTA's proposal must be negotiated into a contract.

Despite modeling by Price Waterhouse Cooper, TxDOT staff and JP Morgan (equity partners of Cintra), which applied discount rates to the value of the NTTA bid, some of the Commissioners questioned how accurate the discount rates applied in the models could be since they are based on projections instead of history or known factual data. Price Waterhouse Cooper had discounted NTTA's upfront payment. Most of the Commission seemed to believe that upfront money paid at financial close should not be discounted. NTTA agreed that the upfront money would be paid at financial close, which is set 45 days after the signing of the contract.

One Commissioner mentioned risk, and referred to the Orange County, CA tollroad which the taxpayers bought back from the private partners at a high cost to the taxpayers. Several citizens addressed the commission, stating that they'd prefer that this not be a toll road. One very articulate citizen pointed a number of funding sources available to the State other than toll revenue and private investments in toll roads to finance the state's needed infrastructure. All private citizens who spoke said of the two choices (Cintra or NTTA), their preference was that NTTA be allowed to build SH 121.

Lt. Governor David Dewhurst wrote the Texas Transportation Commission stating his support for NTTA receiving the SH121 bid.

On numerous occasions during the 80th Legislative Session, Commission members publicly stated they will look to locl officials for guidance on transportation projects. I am hopeful this will be the case for the SH 121 project. Local control was the legislative directive embedded in SB 792, and I feel this is the proper way to proceed with current and future transportation projects.

I thnk the Legislature and TxDOT can work together to solve the state's transportation problems, but local control must be at the heart of these important decisions. I support the RTC's vote to award the SH 121 project to NTTA and hope the Commission will honor the region's decision.

Thursday, June 28th Texas Transportation Commission Meeting

By Faith Chatham - June 28, 2007

The Texas Transportation Commission will convene at 9:00 a.m. Thursday, June 28 in the Dewitt C. Greer Building, 125 East 11th Street, Austin, Texas.

WATCH THE COMMISSION MEETING ON THE INTERNET.
Agenda
(Requires Quick Time Player to view video.
Download Quicktime (free) player)|

Agenda Item 6. Toll Projects
a. Collin and Denton Counties – Consider the recommendation of the Regional
Transportation Council concerning the financing, construction, and operation of
the SH 121 project from Business SH 121 to US 75 in Denton and Collin
counties (MO)

Agenda

Item 10: d. Right of Way Dispositions and Donations
(1) Denton County – FM 3040 at Valley Parkway in Lewisville –
Consider the exchange of right of way (2 MOs) MO1
MO2

FACTS:
Texas Transportation Commission

The Texas Transportation Commission is a five-member board appointed by the Governor to oversee TxDOT. The Commission:

- plans and makes policies for the location, construction and maintenance of state highways,
- oversees the design, construction, maintenance and operation of the state highway system,
- develops a statewide transportation plan that contains all modes of transportation, including highways and turnpikes, aviation, mass transportation, railroads, high-speed railroads and water traffic,
- awards contracts for the improvement of the state highway system,
encourages, fosters and assists in the development of public and mass transportation in the state, and
- adopts rules for the operation of the department.

[Source: TxDOT website]

NTTA Takes $5 Billion Tollway From Cintra - NCTCOG regret at not mentioning that Price Waterhouse Cooper worked for Cintra on TTC Bid

"Eastland said that he regretted that he had not mentioned that Price Waterhouse Cooper had worked for Cintra on the Trans-Texas Corridor."
by Richard Williamson - The Bond Buyer - June 19, 2007 Copyright 2007

DALLAS — In a dramatic reversal, the North Texas Regional Transportation Council yesterday handed a $5 billion toll project to the North Texas Tollway Authority less than four months after it originally selected private development team Cintra/ JPMorgan.

The vote must be seconded by the Texas Transportation Commission, which had already approved Cintra’s bid in February — before the competition with the NTTA.

Despite the NTTA’s late-entry to the bidding, top officials said the authority could quickly catch up to Cintra’s plans for completion of the road by 2010.

“We’ve already commenced work to ensure on-time delivery,” said NTTA executive director Jerry Hiebert. “We’re certain NTTA will be on time for the financial close.”

The battle between the NTTA and Cintra was set up in March, just days after the 23-mile tollway in Denton and Collin counties north of Dallas was awarded to Cintra. Cintra emerged as the favored bidder after three years of developing its proposal.

By contrast, the NTTA developed its 800-page proposal in less than a month after state Sen. John Carona, R-Dallas, persuaded the RTC and Texas Department of Transportation to reopen the bidding to the toll authority, a division of the state.

While the NTTA proposal appeared to trump Cintra’s bid by about $100 million, analysis by TxDOT and the auditing firm of Price Waterhouse Coopers showed that Cintra’s proposal netted out as the better value due to a variety of factors.

In its presentation to the RTC board Thursday, NTTA board chairman Paul Wageman and Hiebert sweetened their original offer of $2.5 billion in an up-front payment and $833 million over the life of the project. At the board’s request, the NTTA would make the entire $3.3 billion payment for the project up-front, they said.

The authority, which operates 64 miles of toll roads in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, has complained of unfair treatment of its proposal and of conflicts of interest involving Price Waterhouse Coopers. After PWC issued its report favoring Cintra, it was revealed that the firm was working as auditor for Cintra, the Spanish developer whose full name is Cintra, Concessiones Infraestructuras de Transporte.
PWC and Cintra claimed that there was no conflict because the PWC auditors in Spain were a separate team from those who conducted the analysis for the RTC.
But Wageman disagreed, pointing to the fact that PWC also worked with Cintra and its partner Zachary Construction of San Antonio on development of the Trans-Texas Corridor, a proposed network of tollways in Central Texas whose final cost could reach $150 billion.

“How can Price Waterhouse Coopers possibly be unbiased and fair in evaluating its partner’s proposal against a competitor’s?” Wageman asked.

The NTTA originally passed up the SH 121 project when the 23-mile toll project was under discussion for financing in 2004, according to TxDOT. Cintra was one of the private developers that responded to financing proposals.

The NTTA has acknowledged comments from the three rating agencies that its credit rating will likely fall as it more than doubles its debt to build SH 121. But officials say they can stay within an A-range.

“We’re going to see a decrease in our credit rating,” Hiebert said. “But the inverse of that would be to just take our money and sit on it.”

Under a protocol agreement with TxDOT and Cintra last year, the NTTA was designated the toll collector and operator for the SH 121 project while Cintra was in charge of construction and financing.

Asked at Thursday’s RTC meeting why the authority earlier had ceded the project to Cintra, Wageman pointed to legislation favoring comprehensive development agreements with private developers in order to preserve bonding authority for government entities. That position was reversed last week with Gov. Rick Perry’s signing of SB 792, which gives toll authorities first shot at projects in their regions.
“We thought the better part of valor was to step back and accept a process that SB 792 has now extinguished,” Wageman said. “This has been an imperfect process.”

Mike Eastland, executive director of the RTC, said at yesterday’s meeting that PWC was the only viable contender to accomplish the analysis of the bidders in a short period time.
Eastland said that he regretted that he had not mentioned that PWC had worked for Cintra on the Trans-Texas Corridor. “We made a mistake,” he said. “We admit the mistake, but I do not think it is material.

© 2007 The Bond Buyer:

“The question is whether we want the money to stay in North Texas..."

Feelings Mixed on NTTA Pick
by Richard Williamson -The Bond Buyer - 6/20/07
Copyright 2007

DALLAS — In awarding the $5 billion State Highway 121 toll road project to the North Texas Tollway Authority, many local government representatives on the North Texas Regional Transportation Council cited the importance of keeping toll revenue in the region.

But others fear that stripping the project from the private development team of Cintra/JPMorgan four months after it was awarded will keep badly needed capital out of the region.

“I believe we have enormous risk to the region if we go with the NTTA bid,” said Wendy Davis, a Fort Worth City Council member who serves on the RTC. “I don’t think it is going to keep money in the region. And I think it is the least — not the most — responsible decision we can make.”

Citing a list of Dallas-Fort Worth-area toll projects on the NTTA’s agenda, she said: “If we want to be able to finance all those projects, we’ve got to keep the private sector at the table.”

Davis ended up on the losing side of a 27-to-10 vote Monday as the RTC reversed its February decision to award SH 121 to Cintra/JPMorgan, the winner among three private development finalists. On Monday, the RTC chose the NTTA despite analysis from the Texas Department of Transportation and Price Waterhouse Coopers showing Cintra’s proposal had a higher net value to the region.

The RTC’s decision must be ratified by the Texas Transportation Commission on June 28, but NTTA chairman Paul Wageman noted that the TTC had vowed to support the RTC’s decision. The RTC, a coalition representing regional governments, works under the TTC to manage transportation projects in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

“We look forward to the swift approval by the Texas Transportation Commission at their next scheduled meeting later this month,” Wageman said.

Jose Lopez, Cintra’s Austin-based U.S. director, later issued a written statement.

“As independent analyses have shown, the joint venture of Cintra and institutional investors advised by JPMorgan Asset Management is the superior proposal for SH 121,” Lopez said. “The RTC’s own independent financial advisers found that our proposal offered the best value to the region.”

In voting for the NTTA, some council members cited SB 792, recently signed by Gov. Rick Perry. It gives toll authorities first rights to toll projects. That translates to a virtual monopoly for government toll authorities, one council member said.

Many of those voting for the NTTA looked askance at Cintra’s projected profit of $763 million over 50 years.

“The question is whether we want the money to stay in North Texas, or go to New Jersey or Delaware or wherever it might go into the international market,” said Dallas City Council member Bill Blaydes.

Some RTC members, such as Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley, switched positions in favor of NTTA. “I think this is the toughest decision I’ve had to make in the 10 years I’ve been on the board,” Whitley said. “This is supposed to be the crown jewel in the region and maybe the state. So woe be to us if this project fails.”

When completed in 2010, State Highway 121 will be a 23-mile tollway in Denton and Collin counties north of Dallas.

While Cintra claimed that awarding the project to the NTTA would reduce the authority’s bonding capacity by $1.5 billion, the authority claimed that winning SH 121 — more than doubling its bond debt — would actually increase its bonding capacity by $4 billion or more.

Price Waterhouse Coopers analyst Arthur Baines landed somewhere in the middle, saying NTTA debt capacity would drop by about $1 billion immediately. It would gradually recover over the initial 23 years of the 50-year financing. For the remaining 27 years, the project would have a positive impact on the NTTA’s debt capacity, Baines indicated.

The authority plans to issue commercial paper and take that out with bonds within 60 days. The proposal calls for up-front payment of $2.5 billion and $833 million over 50 years to the RTC. The NTTA has already recognized that its A-plus credit rating will fall. But officials expect it to remain in the “A category.” All three credit rating agencies have examined the proposal and announced plans to reevaluate the ratings once the project is finally awarded. Indeed, Standard & Poor’s yesterday placed its A-plus rating for the NTTA’s roughly $1.4 billion of revenue bonds issued for the Dallas North Tollway System on CreditWatch with negative implications.

© 2007 The Bond Buyer

State not sold on NTTA's bid for 121 toll road

Commissioners raise doubts about toll plan OK'd by regional panel
By MICHAEL A. LINDENBERGER - The Dallas Morning News - Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Two of five Texas Transportation Commission members said Tuesday that they can't guarantee they will ratify Monday's decision by local leaders to recommend the North Texas Tollway Authority for the State Highway 121 toll project.

Commissioners Ted Houghton of El Paso and Hope Andrade of San Antonio said awarding the contract to NTTA could leave the state vulnerable.

Mr. Houghton said NTTA's proposal is subject to more unknowns than the bid from its rival Cintra, the Spanish construction firm.

"Cintra's offer was a firm bid, an iron-clad contract that we could have closed on yesterday and they would have handed us a check," he said. "NTTA's is not a firm bid; it's merely a proposal. And so now we will have to negotiate."
Commission members get the final say on who will build the coveted 26-mile toll road in Collin and Denton counties. But the Regional Transportation Council sent them a strong message Monday with its 27-10 vote in favor of giving the lucrative contract to the NTTA.

The commission's June 28 agenda will include an action item on the Highway 121 bid, according to the Texas Department of Transportation. But what that item will say – and whether it's a final decision or simply an agreement to negotiate with NTTA – is not clear.

Still, commissioners are eager to work with the RTC in North Texas, Ms. Andrade said. But she said she first must be convinced that the NTTA proposal is the best deal for Texas and doesn't expose the state to a lawsuit from Cintra.

"I want to first make sure that we don't place any risks on the state," Ms. Andrade said. "If there was any negative impact on the state, we would have to bring the region together to tell them we need to figure out how to do this."

Commissioners Ned Holmes of Houston and Fred Underwood of Lubbock could not be reached for comment Tuesday, and Chairman Ric Williamson of Weatherford declined to say what weight he will give the RTC's decision.

"Now that we have an action item before us, it's inappropriate for me to comment as it might be interpreted as how I intend to vote," he said.


Cintra's effect

Commission members and Transportation Department spokesman Randall Dillard said the regional vote will be given great weight in Austin. They argued that NTTA's win was a victory, not a setback, for Gov. Rick Perry's campaign to attract private companies willing to invest in building Texas roads.

"The world changed, and history was made," Mr. Dillard said. "And the RTC decision proves that competition has played, and can play, a vital role in the building of Texas roads."

Mr. Houghton was more explicit. The fact that NTTA was willing to propose paying billions of dollars upfront for the road is a direct result of Cintra's involvement in the bidding process, he said.

"Competition has worked," said Mr. Houghton, who has previously criticized the NTTA. "We've won. And all you have to do is look at history. Tell me, how else would we have been able to pull in $2.8 billion, or whatever the final amount will be, without bringing in the free market?"


NTTA proponent

Mr. Houghton and his fellow commissioners were appointed by Mr. Perry, a Republican. But the governor's eagerness to award Cintra the Highway 121 project met opposition from within his own party.

State Sen. John Carona, R-Dallas, opposed awarding the contract to Cintra and helped smooth the way for NTTA's bid. Mr. Carona now says he agrees that Cintra's bid resulted in a better proposal from the NTTA.

"The governor and the ... [transportation commissioners] did the right thing by introducing the free market into the process," Mr. Carona said.

But he said Mr. Williamson promised him that the regional vote would be decisive on the Highway 121 project.

"The commissioners are honorable men and women," Mr. Carona said. "And the chairman of the commission told me, in no uncertain terms, during the last session that the wishes of the RTC will be honored. I believe he is a man of his word.
"Certainly, if the Transportation Commission chose to ignore the overwhelming wishes of RTC, then that would not bode well for future relations between the Legislature and the Texas Transportation Commission.

WFAA NEWS

A cliff hanger in DFW -- suspense, intrigue, deceit and a final vote for the hometown guys on SH121

By Faith Chatham - Wed Jun 20, 2007

The NCTCOG SH 121 workshop on Thursday and the RTC meeting Monday were long and tense. The Monday meeting to vote on awarding the Contract on SH121 ran over two hours longer than orginally scheduled. Until the last 15 or 20 minutes of the meeting, I felt that the vote would probably go to Cintra. During both days, I never heard aggressive or hostile questioning of Cintra, but many members of the RTC questioned (and/or preached) to NTTA so aggressively that it seemed hostile.

Read blow by blow analysis of the the vote to let SH 121.

NTTA gets OK for 121 toll project

By MICHAEL A. LINDENBERGER and JAKE BATSELL - The Dallas Morning News - Monday, June 18, 2007

Local elected officials have endorsed the North Texas Tollway Authority to build the controversial State Highway 121 toll project.

The 27-10 vote Monday by the Regional Transportation Council sets the stage for a showdown in Austin at the Texas Transportation Commission, which is expected to make a final decision June 28. While the commission has previously said it will place great emphasis on the council’s vote, it is not bound to do so, TxDOT spokesman Randall Dillard said.

The recommendation that NTTA win the contract runs counter to the strong preference for the rival bidder, the private Spanish construction firm Cintra, previously expressed by the Texas Department of Transportation, Gov. Rick Perry’s administration, and the executive staff of the Regional Transportation Council alike. Cintra’s involvement was billed by TxDOT and others as a way to expand the total amount of money available for the building North Texas roads in the future.

Council members appear to have been convinced that endorsing a local entity, with a long history of building and operating toll roads in North Texas, was preferable to awarding the contract to a private company based in Spain that builds toll roads across the world, but which has limited experienced in Texas.

“What it really boils down to is whether the dollars that are made here stay here in Texas, or if they are going to fly off [as corporate profits] to Delaware, or wherever they go,” said Dallas City Council member Bill Blaydes.

Read more

NCTCOG hired Price WaterhouseCooper as "independent auditor" on SH121 knowing they were on Cintra payroll

Cintra's auditor assessed 121 bids

Price Waterhouse's ties to firm it endorsed for toll road not disclosed
Cintra's auditor assessed 121 bids
Price Waterhouse's ties to firm it endorsed for toll road not disclosed
By MICHAEL A. LINDENBERGER and JAKE BATSELL - The Dallas Morning News - - Saturday, June 16, 2007

An accounting firm's evaluation of rival bids to build and operate the lucrative State Highway 121 toll road may not have been as independent as first billed, according to some public officials who will vote on the bids.

Corporate records show that Price Waterhouse Coopers, which was hired to evaluate the bids, has served as outside auditor to the Spanish firm Cintra since 2003. Cintra also paid the accounting firm $100,000 to develop financial models for the controversial Trans-Texas Corridor highway project in 2004.
Mike Eastland, executive director of the North Central Texas Council of Governments, defended his agency's hiring of Price Waterhouse. He said many council members knew about Price Waterhouse's work as Cintra's auditor but acknowledged that he or his staff should have informed the 39-member Regional Transportation Council about the accounting firm's work with Cintra on the Trans-Texas Corridor.
"We did fail, apparently, to convey that to the board, and I'll take responsibility for that," Mr. Eastland said. "It's an oversight on our part. I can see nothing in the [Price Waterhouse] analysis or their way of presenting it that would say we're trying to slant this one way or the other." Executives at the North Texas Tollway Authority, Cintra's rival for the Highway 121 contract, said Price Waterhouse's assessment, delivered to the transportation council on Thursday, was biased.

"Our point is incredibly obvious," NTTA board chairman Paul Wageman said. "The judge of a competition should not be in business with one of the contestants. How can Price Waterhouse Coopers possibly be unbiased and fair in evaluating its partner's proposal against a competitor's?"

"What the NTTA, the RTC members and the region didn't know is that Price Waterhouse Coopers is part of Cintra's team on a [Trans-Texas Corridor] project worth billions of dollars," Mr. Wageman said.

"That's sour grapes," said Cintra's Jose Lopez, president of the company's North American operations.

Cintra's proposal came out looking better simply because it is, Mr. Lopez said. He said Cintra's partnership with Price Waterhouse on the Trans-Texas Corridor was minor and concluded in 2005.

The council of governments paid Price Waterhouse about $200,000 for its report, which was highly critical of NTTA's proposal.
Many members of the Regional Transportation Council had considered the report's conclusions essential. It was to be their only chance to have an independent firm assess the bidders' billion-dollar claims.
By Friday, however, word of the potential conflict had circulated among council members who had gathered in Arlington for an annual luncheon. Some members said they were aware of at least some of Price Waterhouse's ties to Cintra. Others said they learned about them only Friday.

"I just found it out as we were sitting down to lunch here today," said John Murphy, a Richardson City Council member who sits on the RTC. "I'm very disappointed, quite frankly, that we did not have that disclosure made to us, because it does change the perception, and it may change our feelings regarding what is the right picture of the Cintra and NTTA bids."

Given Price Waterhouse's business relationship with Cintra, it's hard to believe the firm could render an objective analysis of the two bids, Mr. Murphy said.

The discussion about Cintra's business relationships with Price Waterhouse comes at a critical time.

The Regional Transportation Council is scheduled to vote Monday on whether to endorse Cintra or NTTA. The Texas Transportation Commission, which sets policy for Texas highways, will meet on June 28 in Austin and is scheduled to make a final decision on the Highway 121 project.


Limited choices

Mr. Eastland said the North Central Texas Council of Governments selected the best accounting firm it could on short notice. The job entailed reviewing highly complex proposals that are hundreds of pages long. The firm had about two weeks to complete its review.

"The fact was we weren't going to get anybody that didn't have a conflict that was capable of doing the work. And then it got down to degree of conflicts. Do we do the study, or do we not do it? ... Were we better off not to have any analysis work done?" Mr. Eastland said. "Or do we take the best that we can get, the most distant from the process?"

Council of Governments transportation director Michael Morris said in an interview earlier this week that the agency had difficulty finding qualified bidders for the analysis the RTC wanted done. Mr. Morris said seven of the nine accounting firms invited to bid on the work declined.

But Barry J. Epstein, an expert in accounting standards of conduct and a lawyer specializing in cases about accounting practices, said Price Waterhouse should never have bid on the contract since it is Cintra's auditor.

"This is beyond the pale," Mr. Epstein said. "They should not have bid for the job, given that one of their clients was a candidate [for the road contract]."

Rigorous protocols

Price Waterhouse defended its decision to evaluate the bids for the RTC, insisting that the Spanish office that audits Cintra's books is separate from the U.S. firm.

"The Spanish audit relationship was fully disclosed to the North Central Texas Council of Governments," said Steven Silber, a spokesman for Price Waterhouse in New York. "In accordance with our independence standards, at no time was there any sharing, or mutuality, of personnel or project information between the teams conducting the bid analysis in Texas and the team auditing Cintra."

Mr. Silber also said the firm rigorously evaluated its relationships with Cintra before submitting its bid.

Some NCTCOG members who agreed to hire Price Waterhouse without knowing about its work in Texas for Cintra said Friday that they might have hired the firm anyway.

"What decision would we have made had we known about the advisory services? I don't know," Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley said. "That's water under the bridge. I can't tell you what we would have done at that point."

Mr. Whitley said the fact that Price Waterhouse audits Cintra doesn't concern him.

"When you talk about the separateness of that office in Madrid versus this office in this particular area, I do not think that would in any way cause there to be that conflict. The size of the fee that we're talking about here, Price Waterhouse is not going to risk their reputation over a couple hundred thousand dollars' worth of fees."

Mr. Wageman said Thursday's meeting left him and the NTTA "concerned" about the likelihood of getting a fair vote on Monday.

Board members and conflict of interest ethics violations

Several members of the NCTCOG RTC are probably in violation of Chapter 176 of the Local Government Code which reads:

(4) describe each affiliation or business
relationship with a corporation or other business entity with
respect to which a local government officer of the local
governmental entity:
(A) serves as an officer or director; or
(B) holds an ownership interest of 10 percent or
more;
(5) describe each affiliation or business
relationship with an employee or contractor of the local
governmental entity who makes recommendations to a local government
officer of the local governmental entity with respect to the
expenditure of money;
(6) describe each affiliation or business
relationship with a person who:
(A) is a local government officer; and
(B) appoints or employs a local government
officer of the local governmental entity that is the subject of the
questionnaire; and
(7) describe any other affiliation or business
relationship that might cause a conflict of interest.
(d) A person described by Subsection (a) shall file an
updated completed questionnaire with the appropriate records
administrator not later than:
(1) September 1 of each year in which an activity
described by Subsection (a) is pending; and
(2) the seventh business day after the date of an event
that would make a statement in the questionnaire incomplete or
inaccurate.

Refer to the Chapter 176 Local Government Code

The By Laws of the RTC cites adherence to Chapter 171 of the Local Government Code which has a more narrow interpretion of Conflict of Interest.

At the June 14 RTC Meeting of the NCTCOG, a member inquired about possible conflicts of interest by RTC members specifically in relation to the upcoming vote on awarding the lucrative SH121 contract at the Monday, June 18th RTC meeting. A specific question was asked about members of the RTC who are TxDOT officials refraining from voting. A NCTCOG official replied that it would be left to the members, including NTTA Board Member Dallas Mayor Lauri Miller to decide whether they have a conflict of interest.

In a February phone call to NCTCOG Executive Director Mike Eastland, he stated that "We (the NCTCOG) do not usually attempt to enforce ethics conflict of interest rules on members of committees who are appointed by member governments." When questioned about a specific member with alliances which created at the very least, the impression of a conflict of interest, Eastland replied: "You'll have to go to the District Attorney in the county where the member lives to file a complaint of ethics violations." Concern was expressed to Mr. Eastland that the NCTCOG did not attempt to monitor ethical conduct of members serving on their boards and commissions in regard to actions in relation to their service on NCTCOG Boards and Commissions.

Application of ethics rules by Councils of Governments varies:
in March 2007, the Executive Director of the East Texas Council of Governments said: "We take very seriously the actions of members of boards and commissions as well as staff in service to the COG. Our attorney explains very clearly to all our members that they are to avoid conflicts of interest and the perception of conflicts of interest." He said that they "monitor and try to avoid possible violations," rather than referring them to the home county of the members. This statement was made in a telephone call within days of NCTCOG Executive Director Mike Eastland's explanation that at the NCTCOG they leave it to each member to determine if they have a conflict of interest.

At the RTC June Public Meeting in Arlington, concern was expressed that three members of the RTC serve on the Board of Directors of NASCO CORRIDOR, an organization with a mission statement to influence local, regional, state and federal governments to enact laws and fund improvements and construction of multi state tranportation corridors to priotize the shipment of international cargo over passenger transportation solutions. NCTCOG Transportation Director Mike Morris stated he saw no conflict of interest in three NASCO CORRIDOR Board Members (Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley, RTC Chairwoman Denton County Commissioner Cynthia White and RTC member Denton Mayor Pro-tem Tex Kamp) serving on the Regional Transportation Committee, where they set policies for this region and vote awarding contracts for construction projects.

Thursday June 14 at the RTC meeting was the first time since these queries earlier in the Spring to Executive Director Mike Eastland, that RTC members have openly discusses possible conflicts of interest of RTC members. Those members who voiced the subject are to be commended. Commissioner Maurine Dickey of Dallas asked how the NCTCOG RTC bylaws address conflict of interest. Staff replied that they 'were not sure' but would research it and post the bylaws on the RTC website before the Monday meeting.

Examining the bylaws today revealed that the bylaws address adnerence to Chapter 171 of the Texas Local Government Code. It is recommended that the NCTCOG instruct its members and vendors that they must also adhere to Chapter 176, which addresses Members of Board of Directors as having conflicts of interest in addition to those who own 10% financial interest in a business or investment.

Perry signs legislation to halt private toll roads

But the moratorium excludes virtually all North Texas projects
By CHRISTY HOPPE and JAKE BATSELL - The Dallas Morning News - Monday, June 11, 2007

AUSTIN – Gov. Rick Perry signed a new transportation law (SB792) Monday that
eases some of the fears over runaway toll roads and gives local
authorities more control over road projects.

The bill was a compromise hammered out in the final days of the
legislative session between the governor, who has championed private
toll roads as a way to quickly build highways without raising taxes, and
lawmakers, who have felt the wrath of rural landowners and skeptical
urban commuters.

Legislators revisited a 2003 law that many felt had hidden consequences,
such as allowing private firms to take over large swaths of the state
highway system, stripping property owners of their land and discouraging
public entities from competing for toll projects."Texas was becoming the test tube for private equity plans," said Rep.

Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, who pushed for a two-year moratorium on
private toll deals.

Lawmakers initially – and overwhelmingly – passed a bill that would have
placed more restrictions on the governor's efforts to privatize roads.

Mr. Perry vetoed that bill.

The bill he signed Monday has a partial moratorium in place. But the
two-year freeze was dubbed the "Swiss cheese moratorium" because it's
riddled with exemptions, including virtually all North Texas toll roads
already in the works.

"I am proud to sign this legislation because it will help Texas build
the roads we need to manage our state's tremendous population growth,"
Mr. Perry said.

The bill halts at least one project in San Antonio. And Texas
Transportation Commission members have said the moratorium, despite all
its exemptions, still sends a chilling effect to private investors.

"A seemingly innocuous moratorium is, in effect, a freezing of the
entire program," said Ric Williamson, the commission's chairman, in an
earlier interview.

Mr. Williamson acknowledged that the past five months were humbling for
the Transportation Department.

Lawmakers repeatedly criticized what they described as the agency's (TxDOT)
rogue and arrogant tactics in awarding toll road deals."The whole process has been inalterably changed," he said. "We know
clearly what [lawmakers'] concerns are, what they want us to do, what
they don't want us to do. And we will change our behavior accordingly."

The bill gives local entities such as the North Texas Tollway Authority
the first option to build toll projects, limits private toll contracts
to 50 years and establishes a new process to determine a road's market
value.
On Thursday, transportation commissioners will consider a list of
possible projects to develop under the new legislation, which takes
effect immediately.
...
As lawmakers sought to curb private toll roads, they also thwarted bids
to raise the state gas tax to keep up with inflation and to expand
transit systems through voter-approved sales-tax hikes. They even toyed
with suspending the gas tax for the summer.
...
"What people seem to forget in this whole debate about roads is that the
citizens always pay for the roads," said Sen. Robert Nichols,
R-Jacksonville, a former transportation commissioner and a leading
backer of the moratorium. "The question is, how do you want to collect
the money?"

Read more

NTTA proposes having 121 built by 2012

By Danny Gallagher, Staff Writer - Plano Star - Sunday, June 03, 2007

The proposal for the North Texas Tollway Authority submitted Friday to the Regional Transportation Council said it can have State Highway 121 built in five years.

The 1,000-plus-page proposal, released by the NTTA on Friday, proposes splitting the construction of the roadway into four segments and completing the entire project by 2012 if the state awards the NTTA the construction project.

Construction would take place between Denton Creek and Hillcrest Road, Hillcrest Road and Watter’s Road, Watter’s Road and east of the U.S. 75 intersection and the Dallas North Tollway and the SH 121 interchange. The total design phase for the project would take place between July 1, 2007, and Feb. 20, 2008, and the total construction phase would take place between Nov. 9, 2007, and March 20, 2012, according to the proposal.

The NTTA would also continue to maintain and inspect the road for the next 50 years. They would conduct annual inspections every September until 2057, and handle maintenance procedures on the roadway such as joint sealing, “moderate” pavement repair, overlay, sign refurbishing, pavement markings, and landscaping and irrigation management, according to the proposal.

Financing for the project remained the same as earlier estimates stated in presentations given to the RTC and at NTTA board meetings. NTTA said financing the project as part of the Dallas North Tollway system would include an upfront payment of $2.5 billion at the financial close and $833 million in guaranteed payments for a total of $3.3 billion.

The NTTA also said it would be able to provide a lower overall cost, and greater flexibility to respond to “shifting needs, priorities and requirements that should arise over the next 50 years,” according to the proposal. They also included several offers such as a board resolution that adopts the Texas Department of Transportation/RTC toll policy as the maximum rate for SH 121, an agreement to fund an escrow with $75 million upon acceptance of the proposal, and a commitment from a “AAA-rated” financial institution to provide $3.5 billion to ensure a financial close.

It also reiterated earlier claims that it would be able to keep the funds in local pockets.

“Every penny of cash flow generated from the SH 121 project for the next 50 years will remain in North Texas to fund regional mobility needs,” the report said

Read more

Don't count on the Legislature to do what a community can do for itself

By Faith Chatham
One of the best op-ed pieces I've read recently was by O.K. Carter.
Arlington voters dedicated most of the sales tax to building the Dallas Cowboys a new stadium. North Tarrant County voters moved forward independent of the State Legislature on rail initatives. Citizens in Arlington are hearing about plans to run rail through Arlington for the Super Bowl game but Arlington citizens needing to leave their gas guzzling cars parked and commute to work on mass transit see no train in the near future for them to ride. Air Quality continues to be dismal and City and County and NCTCOG leaders have failed to deliver transit solutions other than toll roads and more concrete. Most Arlington citizens favor rail more than buses yet there are no firm plans for either in Arlington except for tourists.

In North Tarrant County rail initatives are moving forward and there are expectations that they will be funded, partially with surplus toll revenue from CDAs. Arlington citizens will soon be paying toll fees to avoid congestion on I-30 and probably HW360. The City of Arlington has only until the end of this month to submit applications for transit and air quality projects to be funded with part of the regions up-front concession payments. Michael Morris of the NCTCOG said that the CDA concession money can be spent on rail in this region. "If Arlington wants rail, and wants part of the concession payments to help fund it, the City must submit applications to the NCTCOG by the end of this month." Morris continued: "The NCTCOG has worked out an agreement with BNSF railroad to bring passengers through the center of Arlington for the Super Bowl game." Other than that one weekendm there are no plans for passenger rail in Arlington at this time. The NCTCOG has been holding workshops for city and county leaders, providing training on submitting grants for funding for transportation and air quality projects in Tarrant, Collin, Denton and Dallas counties. The CDA concession funds can be spent on rail projects.

"If the City of Arlington were to submit a proposal for rail to the NCTCOG," Mike Morris said: "It would be considered but the City must decide on a rail or mass transit solution and submit the application." He continued:
"If they don't by the deadline (the end of June), then we'll (the NCTCOG Staff) will continue to work with them encouraging them to choose passenger rail. We think Arlington needs it."

If Arlington wants a rail solution - other than the one weekend train to the Super Bowl - the initiative must come from the City. Citizens of Arlington, whether they want it or not, will be paying tolls to avoid congestion on HW360 and I-30. The City must move swiftly to insure that some of the surplus toll revenue returns to solve commuter and air quality problems in Arlington. .

Smart rail move may be genius
By O.K. CARTER - Star-Telegram staff writer - Sun, Jun. 03, 2007

Before the Legislature met, the decision by Grapevine's leadership and voters to fund the Cotton Belt passenger rail line merely looked like a reasonably intelligent, environmentally responsible act.

Now that the legislative session has concluded, the quality of that move has to be upgraded.

Maybe genius would be the right word.

Recollect that, during the 2005 session, a delegation from North Texas pitched the idea of a voter-approved supplemental sales tax to fund regional rail and the Legislature gave some support to the idea.

But lawmakers put off a decision, suggesting that a voter-attitudes survey would be necessary.

That survey, conducted by the Rail Transit Initiative (a coalition of area elected officials), between legislative sessions showed considerable support for passenger rail.

The idea of a sales tax not counting against the current cap went to the Legislature again.

Grapevine leaders -- in particular Mayor William D. Tate -- were certainly aware of the possibility of the enabling legislation.

The safe course would have been to wait.

But they didn't wait for the Legislature.

Grapevine voters were instead asked to approve an increase of three-eighths of a cent in the sales tax to fund a rail-only project via the Fort Worth Transportation Authority.

The idea was to extend the 21-mile stretch of Cotton Belt line from Fort Worth through Grapevine to Dallas/Fort Worth Airport, ultimately ending up with 40 miles of rail.

It will link Grapevine, Colleyville, North Richland Hills and the Fort Worth Stockyards.

It will also pass by Haltom City, Richland Hills and Southlake.

With proposed extensions, the southernmost stop would be near Texas Christian University at Berry Street in Fort Worth, with other stops in the Medical District, downtown and near Interstate 35W north of 28th Street.

A Colleyville stop may eventually be included.

From Grapevine, the line will go to D/FW Airport and connect with a future DART line. Very cool.

The idea had so much appeal that county voters kicked in $25 million more.

And it appears that the North Central Texas Council of Governments will eventually contribute as much as $60 million.

The rail line should be running by 2012.

What happened with the half-cent regional sales tax idea in the legislative session that just ended?

It received only the most perfunctory hearing and then disappeared.

That leaves Grapevine sitting pretty -- its transportation accessibility and regional identity about to be considerably enhanced -- and cities like Arlington, frankly, feeling pretty glum. And looking for Plan B.

"The short answer is that we don't have a Plan B, though I'm really looking for one," concedes Arlington Mayor Robert Cluck. "Our own surveys show an enormous amount of support in Arlington for rail transit, but our remaining quarter-cent [sales tax availability] simply won't get the job done."

In the end, Arlington -- and maybe a big chunk of the rest of Tarrant County -- will have to look for a workable substitute for rail, probably something like bus rapid transit: buses linked together, possibly with dedicated lanes and traffic-signal control to ensure that there's never a red light.

But that's not as appealing as passenger rail, is it?

Grapevine gets a major boost because economic development is often about velocity.

The city now has a substantial head start in what urban planners term "transit-oriented development."

This will be particularly true of new urbanism style: mixed-use development with quick access to passenger rail. It's potentially a bonanza.

Maybe there's another message in this as well: Don't count on the Legislature to do what a community can do for itself.

Read more

RTC Fails to Comply with Federal SAFTEA-LU Public Participation Law

Message sent to Cynthia White, Chair of the NCTCOG RTC on May 29, 2007 by Faith Chatham

Is the RTC deliberately attempting to minimize participation and to violate SAFTE-LU and its own Public Participation Plan? By scheduling only 3 hearings on Revisions to the TIP and Funding, RTC fails to implement its PPP. The RTC has betrayed the trust of the people by shutting most of the citizens of this area out from these hearings. Three sites in a 12,800 sq. mi. area is insufficient access for citizens from all over the region. It is appalling that transportation planners selected these times and sites!

Hearings after work should be scheduled on Transit Lines in both Dallas and Fort Worth. There should be well-publicized shuttle service from Centerport Trinity Rail to the NCTCOG office for the Arlington meeting. To "PROACTIVELY SEEK PUBLIC PARTICIPATION" you must communicate with the GENERAL PUBLIC Requiring the public to drive to adjoining counties for public hearings eliminates economically challenged and infirm people from the process.

There has been no coverage in the main stream media. Sending 6000 postcards (mainly to elected officials, planners and contractors) is insufficient to communicate with 6.5 million citizens. Burying meeting notices 3 tiers down on your website does not give public meetings visibility. To rectify this situation, I urge you to BLITZ the main stream media to publicize these hearings, announcing additional meeting sites and times. Tell the public HOW the TIP and FUNDING directly impacts them.

More sites and times are necessary to accommodate transportation deprived, handicapped, economically challenged and working citizens throughout the region. Failing to schedule meetings after work in Tarrant, Dallas and Denton counties is unacceptable!

Dallas County Residents - Didn't get to sign the Trinity Toll Road Petition - It's not too late

During the May 12th election, Dallas citizens many Dallas citizens signed petitions opposing the plans for the TRINITY TOLL ROAD. If you are a registered voter in Dallas County, you have opportunity to sign the petition. The cut-off date is June 29.

Trinity Vote, A Community Movement to Reclaim the Trinity River Project, includes simple instructions for citizens to collect signatures from their neighbors, co-workers, and relatives.

Instructions and all necessary materials are supplied on the Trinity Vote website.
Volunteers are urged to download the petition and collect signature. If you want to sign the petition but do not want to collect signatures, you can go by the Trinity Vote Office: Turley Law Center, Suite 100
(Central Expwy. at University Blvd.)
Sign the petition or get your petitions notarized!

TRINITYVOTE OFFICE HOURS
Monday, May 28 - Sunday, June 3
Monday: Closed (Memorial Day Holiday)
Tuesday: 11am - 1pm
Wednesday: 3pm - 7pm
Thursday: 11am - 4:30pm
Friday: 11am - 1pm
Sunday: 9am - noon

OTHER LOCATIONS TO SIGN THE PETITION:
Office of Ron Patterson - 814 W. Davis - Every Monday - Friday: 9am - 5pm

DOWNLOAD THE PETITION

The Trinity River Project has changed dramatically from the plan approved by Dallas voters in 1998. The magnificent urban park, complete with lakes and promenades, is nowhere to be seen. A high-speed, limited access toll road is planned to be built within what was supposed to be our Central Park.

The toll road is more than $600 million over budget. Due to safety concerns, it has recently been moved even farther into the park, further reducing parkland and lakes.

Given these significant changes, we believe Dallas voters deserve the opportunity to vote on whether we want a toll road in the Downtown Trinity Park.

We are TrinityVote, a broad-based coalition of Dallas residents who believe that our Trinity River Project is off-course and needs to get back on track.

Our coalition includes neighborhood residents, developers, environmentalists, urban planners, architects, and others who believe that putting a toll road in our park will irreparably destroy the opportunity to create an incredible signature park on the edge of Downtown Dallas.

Join us. Help us reclaim the Trinity River Project.

Read more http://www.trinityvote.com/faq.asp