"It's opening as a toll road; it's not opening as a free road."
Motorists can soon use 121's new lanes
Path from Coppell to The Colony to open in July, sans toll collection
June 24, 2006
By BRANDON FORMBY
The Dallas Morning News
Copyright 2006
Beyond the barricades that keep them on the access roads, Denton County commuters can see it: six miles of paved highway. Lanes of brand-new concrete running from Coppell to The Colony surely would ease their rush-hour woes.
Though the work looks finished, for weeks motorists have had to remain on the service road of the portion of State Highway 121. It's left them confused, frustrated and asking officials just when they'll be able to hop on the toll road.
The answer: next month.
That's when the Texas Department of Transportation will open the main lanes of that stretch of highway and allow commuters to use the new toll road. Officials haven't nailed down an exact date, but they're aiming to get rubber on the road in early July.
Tolls probably won't be collected until early September.
"We don't want to build an asset and not allow the public to use it," said Bob Brown, a deputy district engineer for the transportation agency. "That's our worst nightmare."
He said that although 121 may look finished, there are some small details that need attention. The construction, opening and eventual tolling of this portion of 121 have been mired as much in red tape as in orange barricades.
"There's a long story to this," Mr. Brown said.
State and federal officials approved the project years ago as a free highway. Construction began in 2003, and a year later, state and regional leaders decided to collect tolls on the highway.
The state transportation agency then said it would divert money already dedicated to 121 to other projects, including the widening of Interstate 35E through southern Denton County and FM423 in The Colony.
The decision to impose tolls on 121 required federal approval. As that worked its way through the bureaucratic pipeline, construction continued and was accelerated by several months of unusually low amounts of rainfall.
But even though construction neared completion this spring, state officials couldn't move forward with anything else until they received federal approval.
That came in April, and since then, officials have rushed to bring together all the final details, including highway signs, electronic toll collectors, guardrails and road striping.
Another wrinkle was that the electronic toll collectors probably won't be running until early September.
Regional leaders have a long-standing policy stipulating that any road that opens without tolls cannot be converted to a toll road. Such a conversion would also require countywide approval in an election.
But the state transportation agency says that when the main lanes open next month, 121 will technically be a toll road.
Mr. Brown said the first several weeks are a "marketing period" in which tolls will be waived for commuters.
"It's opening as a toll road; it's not opening as a free road," said Chris Behnke, an assistant area engineer for the transportation agency. "There just won't be any collection until the equipment is collecting."
Once collections begin, 121 will be the first toll road in the nation without tollbooths.
Motorists will be able to use their North Texas Tollway Authority TollTag in addition to the transportation agency's TxTag stickers and the Harris County Toll Road Authority's EZ TAG.
People who don't have toll tags, though, won't have to stop at a booth. Instead, video cameras will capture their license plate number and send them a bill, though that will cost about 33 percent more than toll tag users will have to pay.
The cost of tolls has not been decided.
The only progress commuters have seen on 121 is what they drive by every day. In recent weeks, they've contacted Carrollton, Lewisville and transportation agency officials to vent their frustrations and ask why they can't drive in the main lanes yet.
"We get call after call every day on this," said Sgt. Patrick Murphy, a Carrollton police spokesman. He said most callers complain that the access road gets congested near main lane exits, which force the left lanes of the service road traffic to merge. It angers people, Sgt. Murphy said, because they have to merge for an exit lane that isn't being used.
Mr. Brown said that's a design issue that won't be a problem once the road opens because there will be far fewer cars on the service roads.
Carrollton Mayor Becky Miller said people have been asking her about the road just about everywhere she goes.
"I think it's great they're going to go ahead and open it and let people drive on it," she said.
In Lewisville, the access road's construction in the 1990s drew developers, retail, businesses and what will soon be the city's first convention hotel to the city's southern sector. Lewisville spokesman James Kunke said the opening of the main lanes will probably create an additional economic spark.
"That area is already hot, and it's going to get hotter," he said. "And from a traffic standpoint, it's going to be a vast improvement."
E-mail bformby@dallasnews.com
© 2006 The Dallas Morning News Co www.dallasnews.com
Path from Coppell to The Colony to open in July, sans toll collection
June 24, 2006
By BRANDON FORMBY
The Dallas Morning News
Copyright 2006
Beyond the barricades that keep them on the access roads, Denton County commuters can see it: six miles of paved highway. Lanes of brand-new concrete running from Coppell to The Colony surely would ease their rush-hour woes.
Though the work looks finished, for weeks motorists have had to remain on the service road of the portion of State Highway 121. It's left them confused, frustrated and asking officials just when they'll be able to hop on the toll road.
The answer: next month.
That's when the Texas Department of Transportation will open the main lanes of that stretch of highway and allow commuters to use the new toll road. Officials haven't nailed down an exact date, but they're aiming to get rubber on the road in early July.
Tolls probably won't be collected until early September.
"We don't want to build an asset and not allow the public to use it," said Bob Brown, a deputy district engineer for the transportation agency. "That's our worst nightmare."
He said that although 121 may look finished, there are some small details that need attention. The construction, opening and eventual tolling of this portion of 121 have been mired as much in red tape as in orange barricades.
"There's a long story to this," Mr. Brown said.
State and federal officials approved the project years ago as a free highway. Construction began in 2003, and a year later, state and regional leaders decided to collect tolls on the highway.
The state transportation agency then said it would divert money already dedicated to 121 to other projects, including the widening of Interstate 35E through southern Denton County and FM423 in The Colony.
The decision to impose tolls on 121 required federal approval. As that worked its way through the bureaucratic pipeline, construction continued and was accelerated by several months of unusually low amounts of rainfall.
But even though construction neared completion this spring, state officials couldn't move forward with anything else until they received federal approval.
That came in April, and since then, officials have rushed to bring together all the final details, including highway signs, electronic toll collectors, guardrails and road striping.
Another wrinkle was that the electronic toll collectors probably won't be running until early September.
Regional leaders have a long-standing policy stipulating that any road that opens without tolls cannot be converted to a toll road. Such a conversion would also require countywide approval in an election.
But the state transportation agency says that when the main lanes open next month, 121 will technically be a toll road.
Mr. Brown said the first several weeks are a "marketing period" in which tolls will be waived for commuters.
"It's opening as a toll road; it's not opening as a free road," said Chris Behnke, an assistant area engineer for the transportation agency. "There just won't be any collection until the equipment is collecting."
Once collections begin, 121 will be the first toll road in the nation without tollbooths.
Motorists will be able to use their North Texas Tollway Authority TollTag in addition to the transportation agency's TxTag stickers and the Harris County Toll Road Authority's EZ TAG.
People who don't have toll tags, though, won't have to stop at a booth. Instead, video cameras will capture their license plate number and send them a bill, though that will cost about 33 percent more than toll tag users will have to pay.
The cost of tolls has not been decided.
The only progress commuters have seen on 121 is what they drive by every day. In recent weeks, they've contacted Carrollton, Lewisville and transportation agency officials to vent their frustrations and ask why they can't drive in the main lanes yet.
"We get call after call every day on this," said Sgt. Patrick Murphy, a Carrollton police spokesman. He said most callers complain that the access road gets congested near main lane exits, which force the left lanes of the service road traffic to merge. It angers people, Sgt. Murphy said, because they have to merge for an exit lane that isn't being used.
Mr. Brown said that's a design issue that won't be a problem once the road opens because there will be far fewer cars on the service roads.
Carrollton Mayor Becky Miller said people have been asking her about the road just about everywhere she goes.
"I think it's great they're going to go ahead and open it and let people drive on it," she said.
In Lewisville, the access road's construction in the 1990s drew developers, retail, businesses and what will soon be the city's first convention hotel to the city's southern sector. Lewisville spokesman James Kunke said the opening of the main lanes will probably create an additional economic spark.
"That area is already hot, and it's going to get hotter," he said. "And from a traffic standpoint, it's going to be a vast improvement."
E-mail bformby@dallasnews.com
© 2006 The Dallas Morning News Co
posted by Porkus Maximus Tex: at Saturday, June 24, 2006
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