Great, just great.

The large issue with privatizing the roads is that the reason the late President Eisenhower built them was to assist in National Security. Privatizing the roads places our security, not to mention freedom of movement, at risk. If the road is privatized and we need to quickly move men or material for either a training mission to assist with the clean up of a natural disaster the tolls will impede their movement and our security.

Have I not posted about Texas Governor Rick Perry's deal to privatize the big road that will cut Texas in half - it's a deal with Spanish company Cintra? It's all the talk down my way. Will check and see. This whole "idea" about privatization should make us all very nervous. They apparently can raise the tolls as much as they want to in the future - even though our tax dollars are also being used to help build them. And why is a Spanish company even allowed to bid???

We've got to realize that "privatization" stands for corporate profits.

Mr. Perry's deal with Cintra is another issue altogether because it relates to the moving of Mexican trucks on our highways and the secret move toward the Security and Prosperity Partnership that the leaders of the US, Canada, and Mexico wrote secretly.

I'll be back to post, later. It does have to do with tolls, too, by the way.

Perry didn't lose the November General Election, but his 39% showing (out of the 4 candidates) was certainly a factor in his abysmal percentage. It was a big part of the one debate that was held among the four candidates ~ two Independents: Kinky Friedman and Carole Strayhorn and the one Democrat: Chris Bell. Just to recap...

Have I missed the point you were making, Judy? It looks like the TTC and the SPP are all part of the same plan ~ maybe since all of this is rarely discussed in the media, it's intended to confuse??

This looks like an issue that Republicans and Democrats are in agreement on.

No you haven't missed the point. The TTC is a huge part of the SPP and Mr. Perry appears to have an aide about to reap wealth from this bad deal for the US and her security.

Judy, after re-reading the original post, I see that it was about toll roads in general. You're correct that the TTC and SPP are big issues in and of themselves. Contracts have been negotiated with very little transparency. And how do we get out of binding contracts???

The Texas legislature is in the heat of it as we speak. Here's the Trans-Texas Corridor Watch Web site.

This article by a Texas Republican State Senator, who happens to be an engineer, is inciteful.

QUOTE

DANGER AHEAD:
Toll roads a good deal for shareholders,
but a bad bargain for Texas taxpayers

March 24, 2007

By STATE SEN. ROBERT NICHOLS

Few issues have become as emotionally or politically charged over the past few years as toll roads. As a Texas transportation commissioner for eight years and current sitting state senator, I have a well-documented history of supported toll roads to ensure our transportation infrastructure meets the demands of our growing population.

However, supporting toll roads does not equate to supporting a plan that prohibits competition or agreeing to policies that enrich a few shareholders at the expense of the taxpayer.

Gov. Rick Perry, the Texas Transportation Commission and the Legislature exhibited bold leadership and vision by embracing the toll road concept. Using toll roads enables the state to build more roads faster without raising fuel- or other taxes. Few Texans realize that current state fuel taxes do not cover the cost of maintaining current roads, much less to building new roads.

As is usually the case, the devil is in the details. As the Transportation Commission began negotiating contracts with private companies to build and operate new toll roads, the commission hit several bumps.

Most companies require at least a 50-year contract to operate and collect tolls. So the decisions we make today will affect taxpayers for the next half century. In the event the state needs to "buy back" the road during the 50-year period, it is imperative for us to have a clear buy-back provision to protect taxpayers.

The private companies prefer to put off addressing the buy-back issue until another day. This means the private companies would be free to hire experts to determine what they think the road is worth. It does not take a genius to figure out the companies will calculate the price in a way that enriches their shareholders and leaves taxpayers holding the bag. Therefore, before any contract is signed, the state should negotiate an agreed-upon formula.

Imagine if you could make a deal with the state to build a store in your hometown, use the state's power of eminent domain to take the land needed for your store and then get the state to agree to refrain from building another store in your hometown for 50 years.

Now, imagine your hometown was projected to have double-digit population growth. While it may be hard to fault any business for pursuing such a deal, the taxpayers would hold elected officials accountable.

When the Transportation Commission announced the proposed corridor along I-35 in 2004, both Cintra-Zachary, the company chosen to build the system, and the Transportation Commission publicly stated there would be no "no-compete" clause in the contract.

Fast-forward a few years later and reality is like a cold glass of water in the face. With few exceptions, the Cintra contract contains a noncompete clause stating no alternative roads can be built within miles of either side of the toll road for 50 years without paying penalties. Many similar contracts are being negotiated that would give private companies exclusive rights to many-mile wide areas of land in Texas' highest growth areas.

Put simply, the state is enacting a policy that forces Texans to drive on a toll road with very few alternatives. In high-growth areas, the private toll operator would be free to increase tolls as demand for the road increases. New road construction by the state would be penalized, thereby setting up a classic monopoly, agreed to by the state, forcing Texans to pay ever-increasing tolls. There should be incentives to relieve congestion, not penalties.

Texas' transportation policy is too important to determine without open debate. Moving fast to meet today's demand does not merit shortsighted decisions.

I filed Senate Bill 1267 to place a two-year moratorium on private equity toll projects. Toll roads can be built in the interim by the local authority or TXDOT; however, the government may not contract with a private company to operate toll roads until the Legislature ensures adequate protections are in place.

Surely we can agree that signing away our ability to expand our transportation system for 50 years in the name of expediency is not a wise decision.

Nichols, a Republican from Jacksonville, represents Texas Senate District 3 in East Texas. He is a retired engineer and former Texas Transportation Commissioner.

Here's another excellent write-up about what's going on down here in Texas that has ramifications for the whole country. Texas is on the verge of becoming one BIG toll road.

The TTC is a specific toll road so it counts. SPP and TTC are large issues in themselves, but this on a large scale is what we will get if we privatize our roads. You are correct that it has ramifications for the whole country.

Judy,

I got so carried away with the "profit" part of this that I didn't mention that your point is the one that isn't stressed enough in discussions about this critical topic.

we shouldn't downplay the profit motive either.