Friday, July 18, 2008

Texas Transportation Commission Chair Deirdre Delisi forms new '2030 Committee'

2030 Committee to study transportation needs

Public hearings will gather Texans views on the future of transportation

July 18, 2008

Written by Staff Reports
The Sweetwater Reporter
Copyright 2008

A new committee of Texas leaders has been created to map out the state’s transportation needs through 2030. Formed by Texas Transportation Commission Chair Deirdre Delisi, the 12-member 2030 Committee has been charged with assessing infrastructure needs in light of mounting economic challenges over the next 22 years.

The committee will issue a report on its findings in December 2008. “In recent years I have seen a sharp rise in the discussion about the transportation challenges we face in Texas,” Delisi said. “From the everyday commuter to large shippers, most everyone seems to understand that something needs to be done. However, before we solve the problem we need to define the problem so we can properly align our limited resources.”

The committee, comprised of business and transportation experts, held its first organizational meeting on June 24. In coming months, the committee will hold five public hearings throughout the state to gather input from Texans on the future of transportation. The first hearing will be held July 24 at the J.J. Pickle Research Campus in Austin. The locations and dates of additional hearings are being planned.

“The vitality of any economy is linked to a viable transportation system. To meet the growing competition from others, Texas must protect our prior investment in the transportation infrastructure while addressing the mobility needs of an expanding population,” said 2030 Committee Chairman C. Michael Walton, who holds the Ernest H. Cockrell Centennial Chair in Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. “The charge of the 2030 Committee is to define the transportation needs of Texas.”

The committee will work with professionals from the Center for Transportation Research at the University of Texas at Austin and the Texas Transportation Institute at A&M University.
For more information, including a complete list of committee members, visit www.dot.state.tx.us/news

2030 Committee Members

Ken Allen, San Antonio
H-E-B
David M. Laney, Dallas
Law Office of David M. Laney, PC
Ruben Bonilla, Corpus Christi
Port of Corpus Christi Commission
David Marcus, El Paso
Marcus, Fairall, Bristol + Co.,LLP
Jon Cannon, Dallas
FedEx Kinko's
Drayton McLane, Jr., Temple
McLane Group
Drew Crutcher, Odessa
Landgraf, Crutcher & Associates, Inc.
Roger Nober, Fort Worth
Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corporation
Judge Ed Emmett, Houston
Harris County Commissioners Court
Gary Thomas, Dallas
Dallas Area Rapid Transit
Tom Johnson, Austin
Associated General Contractors of Texas
C. Michael Walton, Austin
The University of Texas at Austin


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