Vote to be held on funding of independent review
City to vote on funding toll road research
10/13/2005
By Ricardo Lozano
The Daily Texan
Copyright 2005
A week from today, Austin City Council will vote on committing $140,000 to examine controversial toll road plans.
Austin and surrounding areas will spend the money to establish a steering committee to determine a course of action for the Phase Two toll road plan. The steering committee will present information to an independent consultant, who will write up a final report.
John Stephens, Austin's chief financial officer, said the plan will help determine if there are any alternatives to the plan and how many of the tolls are necessary.
"This is here to look over the shoulder at the phase two toll road plan, and study the assumptions that went into the plan," Stephens said.
In order to establish the steering committee, Austin will pay $140,000; the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority will pay $125,000; Travis and Williamson counties will pay $25,000 each; Round Rock will pay $25,000; and Hays County will pay $10,000. In total, the study will cost $325,000. The steering committee consists of 11 members: two from Austin, two from CTRMA, one each from the other counties and cities involved, one from the Texas Department of Transportation and two state representatives.
Austin Councilman Brewester McCracken is an opponent of the toll roads and said two stretches of road in particular, State Highway 71 to the Austin-Bergstom International Airport and U.S. Highway 290 at the YMCA at Oak Hill, do not need to be toll roads.
"We want to know what the alternatives are, and believe we don't have to go down this road," said McCracken, who will be one of the Austin representatives on the proposed steering committee.
But the roads, which are needed to alleviate traffic problems, will have to be created as toll roads; there isn't enough money to build them otherwise, said Mike Heiligenstein, CTRMA executive director.
"The city and the county are both putting out bond products, but there is little money there for roads. Most of everything is renovation and reconstruction, if the county and city aren't building them, then who will?" Heiligenstein said.
Citizen groups have also protested against the proposed toll roads. Last Wednesday, the People for Efficient Transportation Political Action Committee filed a lawsuit in Travis County district court against Gov. Rick Perry, TxDOT, and the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, claiming that the board members of the regional toll planning organization were illegally given the ability to dispense federal funds, in violation of constitutional separation of powers.
This is the second lawsuit the political action committee has filed against the state. Earlier this year the group filed and won a lawsuit against CTRMA over the six-year terms for board members.
Sal Costello, founder of the committee, claims the intention to turn public highways into toll roads is wrong since citizens have already paid for them through fuel taxes.
"This lawsuit is about accountability I can tell you, we wouldn't have filed any lawsuit without solid legal ground," Costello said.
Heiligenstein said the lawsuit and Costello's main claim are superfluous.
No public highways are being converted into toll roads, Heiligenstein said.
"If you're driving on it for free today, then you'll be driving on it free tomorrow," Heiligenstein said.
The Daily Texan: www.dailytexanonline.com
10/13/2005
By Ricardo Lozano
The Daily Texan
Copyright 2005
A week from today, Austin City Council will vote on committing $140,000 to examine controversial toll road plans.
Austin and surrounding areas will spend the money to establish a steering committee to determine a course of action for the Phase Two toll road plan. The steering committee will present information to an independent consultant, who will write up a final report.
John Stephens, Austin's chief financial officer, said the plan will help determine if there are any alternatives to the plan and how many of the tolls are necessary.
"This is here to look over the shoulder at the phase two toll road plan, and study the assumptions that went into the plan," Stephens said.
In order to establish the steering committee, Austin will pay $140,000; the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority will pay $125,000; Travis and Williamson counties will pay $25,000 each; Round Rock will pay $25,000; and Hays County will pay $10,000. In total, the study will cost $325,000. The steering committee consists of 11 members: two from Austin, two from CTRMA, one each from the other counties and cities involved, one from the Texas Department of Transportation and two state representatives.
Austin Councilman Brewester McCracken is an opponent of the toll roads and said two stretches of road in particular, State Highway 71 to the Austin-Bergstom International Airport and U.S. Highway 290 at the YMCA at Oak Hill, do not need to be toll roads.
"We want to know what the alternatives are, and believe we don't have to go down this road," said McCracken, who will be one of the Austin representatives on the proposed steering committee.
But the roads, which are needed to alleviate traffic problems, will have to be created as toll roads; there isn't enough money to build them otherwise, said Mike Heiligenstein, CTRMA executive director.
"The city and the county are both putting out bond products, but there is little money there for roads. Most of everything is renovation and reconstruction, if the county and city aren't building them, then who will?" Heiligenstein said.
Citizen groups have also protested against the proposed toll roads. Last Wednesday, the People for Efficient Transportation Political Action Committee filed a lawsuit in Travis County district court against Gov. Rick Perry, TxDOT, and the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, claiming that the board members of the regional toll planning organization were illegally given the ability to dispense federal funds, in violation of constitutional separation of powers.
This is the second lawsuit the political action committee has filed against the state. Earlier this year the group filed and won a lawsuit against CTRMA over the six-year terms for board members.
Sal Costello, founder of the committee, claims the intention to turn public highways into toll roads is wrong since citizens have already paid for them through fuel taxes.
"This lawsuit is about accountability I can tell you, we wouldn't have filed any lawsuit without solid legal ground," Costello said.
Heiligenstein said the lawsuit and Costello's main claim are superfluous.
No public highways are being converted into toll roads, Heiligenstein said.
"If you're driving on it for free today, then you'll be driving on it free tomorrow," Heiligenstein said.
The Daily Texan:
posted by Porkus Maximus Tex: at Thursday, October 13, 2005
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