"Turning our highways into profit centers for foreign corporations is a betrayal of our prosperity and sovereignty."
Letters to the Editor
The state of toll roads
January 31, 2008
John Pettit
Abilene Reporter-News
Copyright 2008
In reference to "Public's turn to speak on toll roads project" on Jan. 16 in the Abilene Reporter-News, toll roads aren't necessarily bad when built with public bonds that revert to freeways when paid off. But turning our highways into profit centers for foreign corporations is a betrayal of our prosperity and sovereignty.
The massive Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC) will destroy 580,000 acres of the best farm and ranching land in Texas. In the 1950s and 1960s, Americans built farm-to-market roads and a great interstate highway system. These weren't toll roads, and we didn't turn the job over to a billionaire foreign contractor to take billions out of Texas.
Rick Perry says Texas will keep ownership of our land, but those words won't mean much when the Cintra-Zachry consortium decides to raise toll prices.
Perry has roundly condemned eminent domain when practiced in other states, but now promotes the largest government land grab of private property in our history, promising to offer "fair market value." Land owners, hold on to your wallets! It's a no-brainer; Perry is listening more to a foreign corporation and Rudy Giuliani's law firm, which is "consulting" on this raw deal, than he is to rural Texans.
We can expand our existing transportation system to accommodate future needs with far less environmental damage than quarter-mile wide tollways.
Texans, stop this! Vote Democratic next November, and please speak out -- freeways, not tollways!
John Pettit
Abilene
2008 Abelene Reporter-News:www.herald-coaster.com
To search TTC News Archives clickHERE
To view the Trans-Texas Corridor Blog clickHERE
The state of toll roads
January 31, 2008
John Pettit
Abilene Reporter-News
Copyright 2008
In reference to "Public's turn to speak on toll roads project" on Jan. 16 in the Abilene Reporter-News, toll roads aren't necessarily bad when built with public bonds that revert to freeways when paid off. But turning our highways into profit centers for foreign corporations is a betrayal of our prosperity and sovereignty.
The massive Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC) will destroy 580,000 acres of the best farm and ranching land in Texas. In the 1950s and 1960s, Americans built farm-to-market roads and a great interstate highway system. These weren't toll roads, and we didn't turn the job over to a billionaire foreign contractor to take billions out of Texas.
Rick Perry says Texas will keep ownership of our land, but those words won't mean much when the Cintra-Zachry consortium decides to raise toll prices.
Perry has roundly condemned eminent domain when practiced in other states, but now promotes the largest government land grab of private property in our history, promising to offer "fair market value." Land owners, hold on to your wallets! It's a no-brainer; Perry is listening more to a foreign corporation and Rudy Giuliani's law firm, which is "consulting" on this raw deal, than he is to rural Texans.
We can expand our existing transportation system to accommodate future needs with far less environmental damage than quarter-mile wide tollways.
Texans, stop this! Vote Democratic next November, and please speak out -- freeways, not tollways!
John Pettit
Abilene
2008 Abelene Reporter-News:
To search TTC News Archives click
To view the Trans-Texas Corridor Blog click
posted by Porkus Maximus Tex: at Thursday, January 31, 2008
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