Keyword: interstate69

Brevity: Headers | « Text »
  • Trans-Texas Corridor dead; I-69 not

    01/07/2009 5:30:13 PM PST · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 13 replies · 642+ views
    The Corpus Christi Caller-Times ^ | January 7, 2009 | Jaime Powell
    The Texas Department of Transportation made an announcement Tuesday that sounded like bad news for South Texas, but isn’t — its multibillion-dollar state infrastructure plan known as the Trans-Texas Corridor is dead. The key part of the plan for South Texas, known as I-69, is not. The state’s $180 billion plan, announced seven years ago, called for thousands of miles of 1,200-foot-wide traffic facilities to include toll roads for vehicles, rail for passengers and freight, and technology and power infrastructure such as fiber optic lines. Tuesday’s announcement by Texas Department of Transportation executive director Amadeo Saenz was a reaction to...
  • Farm Bureau says Trans-Texas Corridor I-69 fails to meet environmental standards

    01/03/2009 7:42:53 PM PST · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 10 replies · 831+ views
    The Bandera County Courier ^ | December 31, 2008 | Contributed
    Bandera local farmers and rancher charge that the I-69 Trans-Texas Corridor Tier One Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) has failed to meet important environmental standards. Barbara Mazurek, Bandera County Farm Bureau President says that these failures are indicative of the problems that exist with the entire Tran-Texas Corridor (TTC). “Because these environmental standards have not been met, the Texas Department of Transportation should seriously consider alternatives to its current model,” Mazurek said. According to Mazurek, there are three main reasons that the DEIS is flawed. • It limits its analysis to alternatives that fit the TTC “vision” of a multimodal...
  • Texas lawmakers to focus on transportation politics

    01/02/2009 7:00:12 PM PST · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 9 replies · 558+ views
    TheTrucker.com ^ | December 31, 2008 | Kelley Shannon (Associated Press)
    AUSTIN, Texas — If anyone wondered whether Texas toll road rage had subsided or lawmakers' irritation at the Texas Department of Transportation had eased, those questions got answered a few days before Christmas: Not so much. Denouncing the massive transportation agency as dysfunctional and out of control, a group of lawmakers reviewing the department said it will be intensely debated in the legislative session that begins Jan. 13. "This is a big agency that is a mess," said Rep. Carl Isett, a Lubbock Republican and one of the leaders of the Sunset Advisory Commission that periodically examines state agencies. He...
  • County official presents wish list for U.S. 281 upgrades

    11/02/2008 5:40:04 PM PST · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 2 replies · 403+ views
    The Monitor ^ | November 1, 2008 | Jared James
    U.S. Highway 281 Presentation >> Priority 1: Spend $75 million to build five overpasses in Falfurrias.>> Priority 2: A $13 million Ben Bolt overpass at Farm-to-Market Road 2508 is proposed to create a safer school zone and eliminate another traffic barrier.>> Priority 3: Dedicate anywhere from $40 million to $104 million to build tolled relief route around Premont or upgrade the existing route with tolled freeway lanes.>> Priority 4: A $50 million project in George West to build connectors to U.S. Highway 59 and Interstate 37.McALLEN -- Whether the route is eventually called Interstate 69 or the Trans-Texas Corridor, four...
  • EPA In Corrigan To Hear Concerns About I-69 TTC

    10/25/2008 7:26:43 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 6 replies · 221+ views
    KTRE.com ^ | October 23, 2008 | Christel Phillips
    CORRIGAN, TX (KTRE)- A draft environmental impact statement prepared by TxDot is at the heart of the I-69 Trans Texas Corridor debate. Members of the Trinity Neches Sub-Regional Planning Committee want to send TxDot back to the drawing board. Bob Dickens, President of the Trinity Neches Sub-Regional Planning Committee says, "We don'think the law and regulations were followed and we do not think TxDot has taken into consideration the impact of the environment, our wildlife, our water districts, our cities, our school districts, and in essence, our way of life. That's why the Sub-Regional Planning Committee met with the Environmental...
  • Planning committee meeting with EPA about Trans-Texas Corridor

    09/11/2008 4:18:00 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 2 replies · 238+ views
    KTRE.com ^ | September 10, 2008 | Mystic Matthews
    GROVETON, TX (KTRE) - The Trinity-Neches Texas Sub-Regional Planning Committee, or TNT, is set to meet with the Environmental Protection Agency next week. TNT says TxDOT has not given enough thought to the environmental impact of the corridor, and they need the EPA to examine the findings they will get from TxDOT about the TTC. "We're not in opposition to improvement and expansion. We just want to make sure it's done right because once you cover up rural Texas with concrete you can't change it back," says Connie Fogle with TNT. The Trans-Texas Corridor is expected to use thousands of...
  • Highway plans spurs formation of group

    09/11/2008 3:32:09 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 4 replies · 232+ views
    The San Antonio Express-News ^ | September 10, 2008 | Elaine Ayo
    St. Hedwig has homes on large lots and a longtime tradition of rural living. And folks there want to keep it that way. “We want to be able to maintain as best we can the reason we moved out here in the first place,” said Kathy Palmer, the city’s planning and zoning commissioner. But a new master plan and recently updated zoning maps are no match for a proposed route of Trans-Texas Corridor 35 that would slice straight through the city of about 2,000 people and create headaches for several city departments, officials said. With neighboring Wilson County, St. Hedwig...
  • TxDOT seeking public input on project

    09/05/2008 6:13:44 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 12 replies · 289+ views
    The Nueces County Record Star ^ | September 4, 2008 | Staff Reports
    The Texas Department of Transportation is asking Nueces County residents to attend a public meeting in Driscoll to comment and provide input on proposed upgrades of US 77 to a controlled access facility that meets interstate standards. The purpose of the meetings is to review proposed options for upgrading US 77 and to present recommendations, TxDOT officials said. The first round public meetings were held in early March. This second round of public meetings is being held as part of TxDOT's continued effort to gain public input on issues related to proposed improvements and to provide an opportunity for public...
  • LETTER: TTC ordeal remains the same

    09/01/2008 9:29:46 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 3 replies · 170+ views
    The Lufkin Daily News ^ | August 30, 2008 | Gary L. Smith, Sr.
    In my recent letter to you concerning the TTC, I misquoted some information about the company known as Cintra. Mr. Patrick Rhodes of Cintra wrote in response to my mistake. Therefore, I stand corrected with the following: Fellow citizens, the company, Cintra, is not affiliated with ZAI-ACS. Cintra is partnered with Zachry on some TxDOT projects and ACS is partnered with Zachry on some other TxDOT projects. Therefore, I hope this clarifies the over-zealous statements in my letter. Cintra is a Spanish-owned company, and ACS is a larger Spanish-owned company. Zachry, a Texas company, is affiliated with each of them...
  • Elevated transport rail imagined for city

    08/31/2008 6:03:21 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 15 replies · 313+ views
    Arkansas Democrat Gazette, Northwest Arkansas Edition ^ | August 31, 2008 | Brandy S. Chewning (Texarkana Gazette)
    TEXARKANA — The company selected to design Interstate 69 has revealed plans to also implement the world’s first air rail freight system in the corridor, possibly starting in Texarkana, Texas. “You [Texarkana ] have railroads here, you already have an interstate, bringing I-69 is another interstate, you’ve got Oklahoma, you’ve got I-49,” said Gary Kuhn, senior project manager for Zachary American Infrastructure. “This is what the logistics world likes to see — that opportunity to go from one mode to another very efficiently.” In a presentation to the Wilbur Smith Rotary Club, Kuhn said the freight shuttle is a new...
  • TTC plans for U.S. Hwy. 59 may not come to fruition

    08/30/2008 5:53:24 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 8 replies · 282+ views
    The Daily Sentinel ^ | August 28, 2008 | Andrew Goodridge
    The Pineywoods Sub-Regional Planning Commission met Thursday to hear a presentation by the commission's president, Hank Gilbert, who said the plans to move the Trans-Texas Corridor to the current U.S. Hwy. 59 location may not come to fruition. The Texas Department of Transportation initially planned to build a new highway system, which would have been as large as 1,200-feet wide, that would run through rural areas of East Texas, including Nacogdoches County. However, TxDOT scrapped those plans in June and announced a new proposal to build the TTC along the existing route of U.S. Hwy 59. But Gilbert, of the...
  • LETTER: Toll road battle continues

    08/17/2008 2:10:14 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 13 replies · 238+ views
    The Lufkin Daily News ^ | August 17, 2008 | Gary L. Smith, Sr.
    Lately I have heard from some of you, asking about the Corridor. Most folks believe it is over, dead, gone from our beautiful East Texas. I have been watching our government's actions on this subject. Did you know that in TxDOT's cover letter to the federal government it states they will only use existing highways to build their corridor? Did you know that TxDOT also stated that it may need to build in non-existing paths also, some time in the future. Citizens, I write you today to make sure you understand that the corridor issue in Trinity County has not...
  • Transportation Commission Picks Developer for Texas Portion of I-69 ZAI/ACS

    08/04/2008 6:13:05 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 11 replies · 98+ views
    Associated Construction Publications ^ | August 4, 2008 | Staff -- Texas Contractor
    The Texas Transportation Commission approves the staff recommendation for a proposal by Zachry American Infrastructure and ACS Infrastructure (ZAI/ACS) to develop the Texas portion of Interstate 69. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) selected the ZAI/ACS proposal over a proposal from Bluebonnet Infrastructure Investors. The proposed ZAI/ACS master plan would develop the southern section of U.S. Highway 77 to interstate standards without tolling that portion of the road. The proposal advances planning for I-69/Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC). The selection of ZAI/ACS for a development contract has no impact on TxDOT's environmental study that will determine the route for I-69/TTC. TxDOT will...
  • Commission picks developer for I-69 project

    06/27/2008 6:42:45 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 7 replies · 193+ views
    The Houston Chronicle ^ | June 26, 2008 | Janet Elliott
    AUSTIN — The Texas Transportation Commission on Thursday selected San Antonio's Zachry Construction Corp. and a Spanish toll road developer to plan a superhighway from Texarkana to Brownsville. The $5 million contract calls for Zachry American Infrastructure and ACS Infrastructure to create a financial plan for the Interstate 69 segment of the Trans-Texas Corridor. "This team represents the best in the balance of local and global expertise necessary to complete a project of this scope," said David Zachry, chief operating officer of Zachry Construction Corp. The private developers' plan calls for seven new loops around Corpus Christi and other cities...
  • TxDOT contract today will push Trans Texas Corridor forward

    06/26/2008 7:20:50 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 13 replies · 198+ views
    The Dallas Morning News ^ | June 26, 2008 | Michael Lindenberger
    AUSTIN -- The second half of the massive Trans Texas Corridor will take a large step toward reality today, when state transportation officials award a $5 million design contract to a team of private toll road operators. The operators will develop a master plan for the portion of the project that will run from Northeast Texas to Houston and then to Mexico – about 650 miles. The contract will not directly authorize the winning consortium to build any part of the super highway. But it will give the winning bidder a position of power for winning the much larger construction...
  • Corridor Watch: Elect our transportation leaders

    06/24/2008 7:48:48 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 17 replies · 136+ views
    The Austin American-Statesman ^ | June 23, 2008 | Ben Wear
    CorridorWatch, a Fayette County-based group that has been active in opposing the Trans-Texas Corridor plan, wants to go beyond the Sunset Advisory Commission’s recommended shakeup of state transportation leadership. The group, led by David and Linda Stall, recommends that TxDOT answer to an elected six-member board led by a chairman appointed by the governor. CorridorWatch makes it recommendation, along with various other reactions to the Sunset commission staff’s recent report on TxDOT, in written comments submitted as part of the sunset process. TxDOT, like all state agencies, “sunsets” after 12 years unless the Legislature acts to keep it alive. As...
  • TxDOT Ready to Sign TTC-69 Comprehensive Development Agreement (CDA)

    06/21/2008 8:45:02 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 11 replies · 139+ views
    Corridor Watch email bulletin | June 20, 2008 | Corridor Watch
    The Texas Transportation Commission never fails to amaze us. Bottom line - this leopard has not changed its spots. Nothing has changed. The Commission and TxDOT are hell bent to sign deals and give away the farm before the legislature can rein them in. Rain, sleet and snow won't stop the mail; and, moratoriums, legislative intent and a sunset review won't stop TxDOT. Just a week ago TxDOT tried to impress everyone with how responsive they could be as they announced their recommendation that TTC-69 focus on using existing facilities rather than building a new highway. The only thing that...
  • TxDOT will recommend no new roads for I-69/TTC

    06/20/2008 5:54:37 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 12 replies · 172+ views
    The Nueces County Record Star ^ | June 19, 2008 | Tim Olmeda
    The controversial project known as Interstate 69/TransTexas Corridor became a little less so last week after the Texas Department of Transportation announced it would recommend utilizing existing highway routes rather than building new ones. The announcement comes after months of public meetings during which residents along the path of the proposed path of Interstate 69/TTC voiced varying concerns. TxDOT has designated four priority corridors to address the state's transportation needs in the next decade. "The preliminary basis for this decision centers on the review of nearly 28,000 public comments made on the Tier One Draft Environmental Impact Statement," TxDOT Executive...
  • TxDOT listens to people about toll road

    06/18/2008 5:15:43 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 13 replies · 200+ views
    The Diboll Free Press ^ | June 18, 2008 | Jerry Gaulding
    A retreat from the Texas Department of Transportation's plan to build a new multi-lane toll road through East Texas is a clear victory for Angelina County and Diboll, local officials said last week. "I'm glad they went back to the original plan," Diboll Mayor Bill Brown said. Instead of a new Trans-Texas Corridor toll road paralleling U.S. 59, Tx- DOT now plans to widen 59 with a new bypass around Diboll and Lufkin. The planned 59 bypass, needed to avoid the signalized intersections in Diboll and Lufkin, provides in the original plan four exits for Diboll. That will be good...
  • Editorial: Interstate relief

    06/16/2008 5:54:26 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 23 replies · 192+ views
    The Dallas Morning News ^ | June 16, 2008 | The Dallas Morning News
    Drivers who get safely off Interstate 35E after arriving in Dallas from Austin or San Antonio have a certain look of relief – like they just outran a buffalo stampede. Only on I-35, the stampede is trucks. The white-knuckle experience helps make the case for some kind of reliever road, even a tolled one. Making that same case has been a harder sell for U.S. highways along the Gulf Coast and East Texas. Drivers there can judge their own level of congestion, and they have insisted that their mostly rural corridor doesn't warrant the major undertaking of a parallel turnpike....
  • Texas Farm Bureau praises I-69 decision

    06/14/2008 2:42:39 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 13 replies · 399+ views
    The Liberty Vindicator ^ | June 14, 2008 | The Liberty Vindicator
    Texas farmers and ranchers are hoping that the Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT) recent announcement to make use of existing roadways in its plan for Interstate 69 is a positive sign when it comes to the ongoing battles with the Trans-Texas Corridor. “We are glad to see that TxDOT is beginning to listen to what so many members of our organization have said for the past four years,” said Kenneth Dierschke, president of the Texas Farm Bureau. Some 28,000 Texans — many of whom are members of the state’s largest farm organization — aired grievances during public meetings held at...
  • Feds must green-light changes in I-69 route plan

    06/12/2008 6:19:43 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 14 replies · 148+ views
    The Houston Chronicle ^ | June 12, 2008 | Rad Sallee
    State highway officials said Wednesday that the first step in carrying out their decision to build a controversial toll road along the present U.S. 59, and not through farm and ranch land, is to get federal approval. Although no federal funding has been sought for the Interstate 69/Trans-Texas Corridor, the Texas Department of Transportation is bound by federal environmental law. The project has generated thick volumes about its likely impact on the natural environment and the communities in its path. The Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) is expected to undergo public review late this year and then get sent to...
  • Texas to consider existing roads for I-69 project

    06/11/2008 5:39:02 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 11 replies · 166+ views
    The Austin American-Statesman ^ | June 11, 2008 | Jim Vertuno (Associated Press)
    Responding to concerns that a superhighway project running from East Texas to the border with Mexico could cut through private lands, state transportation officials said Tuesday that they will only consider putting it along existing roads. State officials have held almost 50 public meetings and received about 28,000 responses from residents about the proposed Interstate 69 project, which would be part of the so-called Trans-Texas Corridor network of toll roads. The "overwhelming sentiment" of the comments from the public was that the state should focus on using existing roads instead of carving new ones out of the countryside, said Amadeo...
  • Brady Urges Removal Of I-69 From TTC

    06/07/2008 4:43:11 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 8 replies · 96+ views
    KBTX.com ^ | June 6, 2008 | KBTX
    WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Congressman Kevin Brady lead a group of nine Texas lawmakers on Friday, from both political parties, in urging the Texas Department of Transportation to remove the Interstate 69 project from the controversial Trans-Texas Corridor and return it to its original route which brings existing highways U.S. 59, U.S. 281 and U.S 77 up to interstate standards. In a letter to Deirdre Delisi, the new chair of the Texas Transportation Commission, the lawmakers maintain that "public support for the original I-69 project - which focused on bringing existing highways up to interstate standards and existed long before...
  • Trans-Texas Corridor draws 27,000 public comments

    06/04/2008 6:03:26 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 11 replies · 228+ views
    Land Line Magazine ^ | June 3, 2008 | David Tanner
    Many in the great state of Texas have a lot to say about a proposed network of toll roads and railway lines known as the Trans-Texas Corridor. The Texas Department of Transportation received more than 27,000 public comments during a three-month comment period on a proposed corridor project called the TTC-69, said TxDOT spokesman Mark Cross. Transportation officials had 47 public hearings in February and March and accepted written comments through April 18 on the environmental and social impact of the corridor. Comments ranged from flat-out opposition to the corridor to suggestions about how to lessen its impact, Cross told...
  • Kolkhorst seeks 'real' reforms to TTC plans

    05/31/2008 9:22:33 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 4 replies · 187+ views
    The Huntsville Item ^ | May 31, 2008 | The Huntsville Item
    State Rep. Lois Kolkhorst said it’s time for Texas transportation officials to talk about real reforms to address the public outrage over the proposed Trans-Texas Corridor. The Brenham Republican’s reaction followed Thursday’s actions taken by the Texas Transportation Commission. The panel adopted a set of guiding principals and policies which will govern the development, construction and operation of all toll road projects on the state highway system and the controversial Trans-Texas Corridor. Bob Colwell, Texas Department of Transportation public information officer for the Bryan district, said the adoption of the guidelines does not reflect the final approval of Interstate 69...
  • New Agreement on the Trans-Texas Corridor

    05/30/2008 6:03:05 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 7 replies · 141+ views
    KTRE.com ^ | May 29, 2008 | KTRE
    Here is the full press release issued Thursday afternoon by State Representative Wayne Christian: Today State Representative Wayne Christian (R-Center), President of the Texas Conservative Coalition (TCC), announces an agreement on vital issues regarding the Trans-Texas Corridor. The Transportation Commission adopted a minute order today reaffirming five statutory requirements proposed by the members of the TCC and issuing two new protections for future transportation infrastructure development.  The minute order is a response to a February 4 letter from the Texas Conservative Coalition (TCC), the conservative caucus of the Texas Legislature.  Rep. Christian, along with thirty-three of his colleagues in the State House, signed it...
  • River City Animal Defense League Joins the Fight Against I-69 (animal rights eco-nuts barf-o-rama)

    05/22/2008 7:18:39 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 3 replies · 166+ views
    Infoshop News ^ | May 21, 2008 | Anonymous
    On the evening of Monday, May 19th, the newly formed River City Animal Defense League (ADL) and friends made our public debut. We took to the neighborhoods, and more specifically the houses of executives and contractors of Gohmann Asphalt and Construction, Inc. Gohmann Asphalt and Construction, Inc. is a disgusting company that has decided to proceed with business in the construction of Interstate-69 (I-69) which is the North American Free Trade Agreement's (NAFTA) superhighway. NAFTA’s superhighway has already been built from Ontario to Indianapolis. It is planned to extend into Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas. Once in Texas...
  • Duo weighs in on I-69 construction by scaling trees

    05/21/2008 10:00:50 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 14 replies · 134+ views
    The Evansville Courier & Press ^ | May 20, 2008 | Jimmy Nesbitt
    Two people protesting the construction of Interstate 69 have pitched a tent roughly 30 feet off the ground in a cluster of trees near the Gibson-Warrick County line. The two men who appeared to be in their 20s caused a headache Monday for Indiana State Police and Indiana Conservation officers, who considered removing them from the tree before ultimately deciding to leave them there. State police received a tip around 1 p.m. and used a helicopter to spot the men, with several patrol officers assisting on the ground. The land, located near the intersection of Indiana 57 and Indiana 68,...
  • Nacogdoches County will fight TTC as new member of regional planning commission

    05/01/2008 5:34:51 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 3 replies · 310+ views
    The Daily Sentinel ^ | April 29, 2008 | Michael Rodden
    County commissioners reaffirmed their stance against the Trans-Texas Corridor, and they took another step toward keeping county government transparent when they met Tuesday. First up on the court's agenda, commissioners heard a presentation by Connie Fogle on behalf of the newly formed Pineywoods Sub-Regional Planning Commission. According to Fogle, the Texas Local Government Code, Chapter 391, requires state agencies to coordinate with local commissions to "ensure effective and orderly implementation of state programs at the regional level." "Critical in the code is the word 'coordinate,'" she said. "This does not mean the commission has to cooperate. The intent is to...
  • Trans-Texas Corridor

    04/29/2008 5:29:55 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 16 replies · 314+ views
    Quarter Horse News ^ | April 29, 2008 | Sonny Williams
    Each day, I make the dreaded drive down Interstate 35 to go to work in Fort Worth. Each day, I slug through the snarl and sludge of ceaseless traffic, which intensifies my growing desire to commit hari-kari, or at least incites a vehement curse of the highway gods. Certainly, we in Texas need more lanes, more roads, more rails, more something to deal with the ever-expanding urban population and growing international commerce. Yet how do we solve our transportation needs without carving up the countryside like some congratulatory cake? Or should the construction of a superhighway-rail-utility corridor even concern us?...
  • Rural residents feel the push from Trans-Texas Corridor

    04/28/2008 5:31:20 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 8 replies · 439+ views
    The Houston Chronicle ^ | April 27, 2008 | Rad Sallee
    Minutes south of Interstate 10 and Sealy, the pastures along FM 1458 are their own silent world in the morning. Mists lift to reveal black cattle, brown and spotted horses, snow-white egrets underfoot in lush green grass. Then a concrete mixer comes churning down the blacktop. Just up the road is a small subdivision. More are sure to come as city dwellers, including weekenders and retirees, move out in search of a quieter, simpler life — and relief from city traffic. Although the gradual influx may bring greater changes in the long run, what disturbs residents most is the planned...
  • Texas Farm Bureau supports transportation alternatives

    04/26/2008 5:32:39 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 11 replies · 168+ views
    Southwest Farm Press ^ | April 25, 2008 | Southwest Farm Press
    Texas Farm Bureau offered several viable transportation and funding alternatives to the proposed Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC) in meeting Texas’ future transportation needs during testimony before the Senate Transportation Committee. “Let me assure you, as an industry we absolutely support and recognize the need for building and maintaining roads in Texas,” said Texas Farm Bureau State Director Tom Paben. “We feel this can be accomplished within the current framework of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT).” “However, there is a need for redirection, as well as a review of the current priorities of the agency,” Paben added, noting several concerns about...
  • Local man on TTC-69 advisory committee

    04/24/2008 4:25:25 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 6 replies · 146+ views
    The Daily Sentinel ^ | April 23, 2008 | Matthew Stoff
    Continuing a lifelong practice of helping rural East Texans, Nolan Alders attended a meeting in Austin Tuesday as a member of the citizens' advisory committee for the Trans-Texas Corridor highway project. Alders was among 18 representatives of communities that run along the route of the proposed highway, which runs from Laredo to Texarkana. The committee members prepared for their roles as community representatives, and heard comments from state transportation leaders, including Texas Department of Transportation Executive Director Amadeo Saenz and Commissioner Ted Houghton of the Texas Transportation Commission. TxDOT literature says the TTC-69 committee — and another committee to represent...
  • County tables resolution to organize panel (concerning Trans-Texas Corridor)

    04/22/2008 5:57:48 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 3 replies · 238+ views
    The Huntsville Item ^ | April 22, 2008 (environut day) | Holly Green
    It has been roughly three months since residents of Huntsville and Walker County attended town hall meetings to voice their opinion on the Trans-Texas Corridor/I-69 project to the Texas Department of Transportation. There was no question then that there was strong opposition to the proposed 1,600-mile national highway, and it seems as though residents’ efforts to stop it has not lost any of its momentum. Several residents attended the Walker County Commissioners Court on Monday morning, expressing concerns about the project and encouraged the court to take another step of action. The five-member court agrees with the majority of the...
  • Lufkin mayor supports I-69 — if it follows current U.S. 59

    04/13/2008 5:44:54 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 52 replies · 815+ views
    The Lufkin Daily News ^ | April 12, 2008 | Brittony Lund
    Despite the uproar over the state's proposal to build Trans-Texas Corridor 69 through East Texas, Lufkin's mayor says he supports the highway — as long as it follows the path of the current U.S. Highway 59. The Trans Texas Corridor/I-69 project is a statewide network of transportation routes in Texas that will incorporate existing and new highways, railways and utility right-of-ways. Anyone wishing to comment on the proposed road can go online to www.keeptexasmoving.com. TxDOT has expanded its public comment period for TTC-69 to Friday, April 18. Gov. Rick Perry appointed Gorden, along with 17 other Texans, to an I-69...
  • McLennan County awaiting plans for Trans Texas Corridor

    04/09/2008 5:10:22 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 13 replies · 329+ views
    The Lariat Online (Baylor University) ^ | April 9, 2008 | Victoria Mgbemena
    As the state's population continues to grow in its urban centers, expansion plans for the highway system continue to be the focus for transportation improvements. The Trans Texas Corridor proposal is aimed to alleviate traffic congestion, improve air quality and provide safer traveling for drivers, among other goals. In 2002, Texas Governor Rick Perry released the plan to create the passageway, which spans northeast from Laredo to Oklahoma and is set to total 4,000 miles in the next 50 years. The $140 billion project calls for the incorporation of new toll roads, commuter railways, power lines and gas pipelines, while...
  • Trans-Texas Corridor foes march on Capitol

    04/06/2008 1:02:09 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 26 replies · 434+ views
    Austin American-Statesman ^ | April 6, 2008 | Patrick George
    For Peyton Gilbert, the battle over the Trans-Texas Corridor is reminiscent of the moment in 1836 when Lt. Col. William Travis drew a line in the sand at the Alamo and invited those willing to fight thousands of Mexican soldiers to step across. "That line in the sand is the Trans-Texas Corridor, and it's a threat to our sovereignty again, just like at the Alamo," said Gilbert, 14, who is from Whitehouse, near Tyler. Gilbert was among a large crowd of people who marched down Congress Avenue to the Capitol on Saturday afternoon to demonstrate against the proposed highway-rail-utility corridor...
  • Corridor comment period extended to April 18

    04/02/2008 6:15:47 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 7 replies · 92+ views
    The Fort Bend Herald and Texas Coaster ^ | April 1, 2008 | Stephen Palkot
    Thanks to an extended comment deadline, almost three weeks remain for people to let their feelings be known about the Trans-Texas Corridor. The most recent study of the proposal, which includes a stretch in Fort Bend County, must be approved by the federal government for the Texas Department of Transportation to proceed with planning and, eventually, construction. TxDOT and the Federal Highway Administration have extended their formal comment period through April 18. During this time, individuals are encouraged to submit written comments on either the project itself or what is called the Draft Environmental Impact Study (DEIS), which is a...
  • Gorden named to I-69/TTC advisory committee

    04/01/2008 5:50:42 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 2 replies · 176+ views
    The Lufkin Daily News ^ | April 1, 2008 | Gary Willmon
    Lufkin Mayor Jack Gorden has been selected by the Texas Transportation Committee to serve on a citizens' advisory committee for putting together information regarding the proposed Interstate 69/Trans-Texas Corridor. According to Texas Department of Transportation officials, advisory committee members represent a cross-section of community and business leaders, landowners, local transportation experts and others. "Our goal is to enhance the public dialogue and meaningfully involve more Texans in transportation decisions," said Texas Transportation Commission Chair Hope Andrade. "These committees will have an important seat at the table as we work together to shape the future of transportation for our state." Gorden...
  • Locals chosen to Trans-Texas Corridor citizens’ advisory committees

    03/29/2008 3:34:17 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 9 replies · 317+ views
    The Waco Tribune-Herald ^ | March 28, 2008 | Ken Sury
    The Texas Transportation Commission today selected members to serve on two citizens’ advisory committees for the Trans-Texas Corridor. Area residents on the I-35 Corridor Advisory Committee include Karen Marstaller of Waco, Don Greene of Lorena and John Erwin of Hillsboro. Each committee will advise the Texas Department of Transportation in the planning of two priority corridors. One committee will focus on Interstate 35 corridor and TTC-35, while the other committee will advise the department on the proposed Interstate 69 corridor and I-69/TTC. The Corridor Advisory Committees represent a cross-section of community and business leaders, land owners, local transportation experts and...
  • Officials: 'Trans-Texas Corridor' a taboo, but need real

    03/28/2008 5:55:47 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 18 replies · 662+ views
    The Fort Worth Star-Telegram ^ | March 28, 2008 | Gordon Dickson
    FORT WORTH -- The Trans-Texas Corridor is now so controversial, merely uttering the words in most political circles is taboo. "We're calling it a 'regional loop' because you can't say 'Trans-Texas Corridor' in the state of Texas anymore," said Michael Morris, transportation director for the North Central Texas Council of Governments. "The Trans-Texas Corridor is a lightning rod," he told visiting state representatives this week while explaining how the corridor would connect to regional highways by 2030. Opposition to the proposed construction of a $184 billion network of toll roads during the next 50 years is so strong statewide that...
  • Commissioners asked to form “391 Commission” against I-69/TTC

    03/27/2008 5:23:51 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 5 replies · 272+ views
    The Navasota Examiner ^ | March 26, 2008 | Rosemary Smith
    Though some may believe the I-69 Trans Texas Corridor will not be constructed, due to overwhelming opposition and various remarks by TxDOT representatives, a newly formed local group called “Grimes County Get Organized” asked Commissioners on Monday to consider forming a Commission group based on Local Government Code 391; to ensure the currently proposed construction plan through the county is officially stopped. The idea to form the commission came from a recent informational meeting about how to stop the corridor held in Lufkin, Texas and hosted by Holland Mayor Mae Smith. According to the informational handouts, the East Central Texas...
  • McReynolds to TxDOT: 'Drop I-69/TTC absurdity'

    03/26/2008 5:37:17 AM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 29 replies · 517+ views
    The Lufkin Daily News ^ | March 25, 2008 | Gary Willmon
    State Rep. Jim McReynolds has sent a letter to the Texas Department of Transportation saying he thinks TxDOT should drop the idea of tying the Trans-Texas Corridor in with plans for routing Interstate 69 through East Texas. McReynolds says tremendous negative outcry from his constituents and other East Texas residents has made it clear to him no one wants infrastructure that massive and disruptive to the quality of life to be built, taking big swaths out of the Pineywoods countryside. "Within the past several weeks, I have personally attended every TxDOT hearing held in my district regarding this proposed corridor,"...
  • Three South Texas highways to be interstates

    03/23/2008 4:49:55 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 35 replies · 1,146+ views
    The Monitor ^ | March 22, 2008 | Jackie Leatherman
    South Texas is not only going to get its first interstate - it is also going to get a second and a third. State transportation officials knew one of three southern highways - U.S. Highway 281 in Hidalgo County, U.S. Highway 77 in Cameron County or U.S. Highway 59 in Webb County - would eventually become part of an interstate stretching from the Texas-Mexico border to Texarkana, in the northeast part of the state. Only Webb County is currently served by an interstate. The state's Trans-Texas Corridor plan calls for an Interstate 69 extension linking South Texas to points north,...
  • Texas Farm Bureau: “TxDOT’s Draft Environmental Impact Study will not withstand judicial scrutiny”

    03/19/2008 6:06:53 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 4 replies · 394+ views
    Southwest Farm Press ^ | March 19, 2008 | Southwest Farm Press
    In comments filed with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the Texas Farm Bureau said the Draft Environmental Impact Study (DEIS) for the proposed I-69 corridor “would not withstand judicial scrutiny.” Under the terms of the National Environmental Policy Act, these detailed environmental studies are conducted under rules developed by the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). According to the farm organization’s comments, the failure of the DEIS to consider the environmental impact of using existing rights-of-way–rather than a single minded focus on building a completely new route–means the study could not hold up in...
  • Anti-corridor groups apprise locals of ways to 'just say no to TTC'

    03/17/2008 5:19:26 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 3 replies · 443+ views
    The Lufkin Daily News ^ | March 17, 2008 | Steven Alford
    Plots by Communists to infiltrate America. The disintegration of borders and rural areas. Citizens mobilizing and rising up against government agencies and big business. It all sounds like the plot for a summer blockbuster, but it's something that could be happening in your own backyard. These were just a few of the topics addressed in the "How to fight the TTC" workshop, held Monday at the Pitser Garrison Civic Center in Lufkin. The conference served as an informational meeting aimed at informing citizens and local government officials how they can unite in trying to stop the proposed Trans-Texas Corridor project....
  • Anti-corridor groups plan Monday workshop at civic center

    03/16/2008 3:04:05 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 10 replies · 1,205+ views
    The Lufkin Daily News ^ | March 16, 2008 | Steven Alford
    There's been a lot of talk about the new Trans-Texas Corridor — the next-generation "super-highway" — and opinions are varying. Now the debate is coming to Lufkin's doorstep. On Monday, the American Land Foundation, Stewards of the Range and TURF will hold a workshop at Lufkin's Pitser Garrison Civic Center on how to stop the Trans-Texas Corridor 69. The event runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. A portion of Texas citizens have voiced their opposition to the TTC-69 in public meetings held by the Texas Department of Transportation, but believing they are not being heard, four cities and their...
  • Deadline looms for ‘corridor’ comments

    03/15/2008 4:08:19 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 5 replies · 340+ views
    The Brenham Banner-Press ^ | March 15, 2008 | Alan Nieschwietz
    Time is almost up for Texas residents who wish to submit a comment on the proposed Trans Texas Corridor, which must be received by the Texas Department of Transportation by Wednesday. Submissions of comments would have to be made either by mail or online at this point, and can be sent to I-69/TTC, P.O. Box 14428, Austin, TX 78761, or go to keeptexasmoving.com, then click on “question or comment” on the left side of the screen. Previously, throughout February and March, TxDOT held 47 well-attended hearings at which oral comments from the public were taken into account. The TTC has...
  • Spanish firm using loan from U.S. to build segments of Texas toll road

    03/14/2008 4:23:23 PM PDT · by Tolerance Sucks Rocks · 20 replies · 753+ views
    Land Line Magazine ^ | March 13, 2008 | David Tanner
    Officials with the Spanish toll road operator Cintra have announced that the company has secured $430 million in loans from the U.S. government to build and operate two segments of a toll road in central Texas. Cintra officials announced the company’s financial plan for the $1.36 billion Highway 130 segments on Monday, March 10. OOIDA Senior Government Affairs Representative Mike Joyce told Land Line that the Association does raise red flags when federal dollars are used to subsidize private investors. Officials with the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association are not, however, categorically opposed to a state using future toll revenue to...