However in their detailed plans, and I'll start with highway 360 because I'm most familiar with it, the plan clearly shows that the existing four lanes would be converted to toll and two new lanes, one each direction, would be created for "non-toll alternatives".
When this issue was raised at one CAMPO meeting with us unwashed types we were told that "no existing roads" meant that we'd still have a non-toll alternative, albeit with reduced lanes over the existing freeway and that it didn't mean that existing roadways wouldn't be converted to toll "if they were more suitable for high capacity modality". Gotta love those CAMPO types.
Want another example? Highway 71 from I-35 to the airport. The six lane road currently under construction would be toll. The current frontage road would become the non-toll alternative. I guess, since it's under construction, that's it's not an existing road, but it has been funded with taxes already paid.
So I'm confused but perhaps you know and can help me out as I don't have a single problem with a new toll road as long as existing tax paid roads don't change, but I feel kinda like they're trying to pull a fast one. Not that a goobermint agency has ever done that before.
On the toll roads you have to recognize what is being done by the state and what is being done by the regional transportation authorities, which were created for local control/decentralization/Home Rule.
Well put. I'm going to vote against Mark Strama as soon as possible. He lied to me personally and all of us in his statements about toll roads. I have wondered often if I have what it takes to stand for election in order to introduce a bill to amend HB3588.