We use the electronic toll tags on most of the toll roads in Texas now. You never slow down at all - just keep driving at 70 MPH.
Posted on 11/01/2007 5:54:49 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
Coin trays in Texas cars may actually get to see the faces of dead presidents.
The much-discussed and controversial Trans-Texas Corridor, or TTC, has breathed life into the debate of toll roads in Texas.
Plans for the Trans-Texas Corridor include TTC-Instate 35, which starts in Laredo and extends north to Gainesville, running along the eastern part of Texas; and Interstate 69/TCC, which has three openings in Laredo, McAllen and Brownsville and follows the coast to Texarkana.
Much of the TTC will be privately operated toll roads, run by the Spanish firm Cintra.
The TTC will not run through San Antonio, and will just skim the eastern edge of Bexar County.
Political science Professor Christy Woodward-Kaupert said of more significance to San Antonio is the proposed toll road for U.S. Highway 281.
A 17-cent per mile toll for two- and three-axle vehicles was proposed by the Alamo Regional Mobility Authority for the stretch of U.S. Highway 281 between Loop 1604 and Marshall Road that will open in 2012.
Kaupert said toll roads have come about as a solution to poor planning.
The state has been under perpetual construction and the population continues to grow faster than what can be sustained with new construction projects, she said.
Economics Professor Cyril Morong said whenever a free service is provided, such as free roads, supply will not be able to keep up with demand.
This translates to congestion, he said, and having people pay to use certain roads that become congested frequently will relieve congestion.
"I don't think it's a result of poor planning, because you always have rush hours," he said.
People are going to be paying for convenience with toll roads, Kaupert said.
Morong said if a person is driving at a time when congestion is not a factor, the driver does not need to take advantage of the toll service.
Many people are against toll roads, Kaupert said, because they think they are paying for roads they already paid for with taxes.
In 1946, according to the Handbook of Texas, a "good-roads constitutional amendment" was passed that appropriated funds for highways from revenue received from gasoline taxes and vehicle registration along with money from the federal government.
What people do not realize, Morong said, is that people are paying for congestion with their time.
Parents may miss a school recital or Little League game because they were sitting in traffic, he said.
The mileage of a driver's car, he said, is also affected because idling lowers efficiency.
People need to weigh the cost of tolls with the cost of their time and the gas they consume, he said.
Students, who generally do not have the spending power of working adults, can feel this impact even more.
The 2006-07 Fact Book for this campus shows that only 39.4 percent of the student population is employed full-time, with 29.6 percent employed part-time and the remaining 30.9 percent not employed.
Faster drive times for students especially could mean the difference between being late for class and showing up on time, he said.
Kaupert said students living in the Loop 1604 and U.S. Highway 281 area, such as the Stone Oak neighborhood where she lives, will be affected the most.
That area, in the 78258 ZIP code, is ranked fifth in the list of population breakdown for fall 2006 in the Fact Book with 776 residents.
For these residents, Kaupert said, the toll would not be as much of a financial burden as for students on the South Side, for instance.
She said one of the benefits of toll roads is that they can contribute to cutting pollution because they help alleviate congestion.
She said Texas has a problem with clean air compliance, which would affect the federal money Texas receives for highways, further exacerbating the state's troubles.
The state has expanded its Metropolitan Statistical Areas to gain more clean air areas, but more needs to be done, she said.
Morong said drivers, especially students who do not have as much disposable income as the general population, would have more of an incentive to do things they should be doing anyway, such as car pooling and using public transportation, to help counter the cost of the tolls.
Toll roads are one solution to congestion.
Kaupert said Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicle bonds, or GARVEE bonds, of which Gov. Rick Perry is a supporter, may be a good idea to pay for future road projects.
GARVEE bonds, she said, are federal highway funds the state anticipates it will have.
She said the state could track where growth is happening and plan for that.
She said people have been moving outside of Loop 1604 and the state knows this from U.S. Census data.
She said people also need to become more involved in government.
A constitutional election will be conducted Nov. 6 with early voting ending today.
The election includes 16 ballot measures. Information on polling locations can be found on the Secretary of State's Web site at www.sos.state.tx.us, or by calling the Bexar County Elections Department at 335-VOTE (8683); polling stations for Election Day will be announced Saturday.
Although it does not address toll roads, Proposition 12 reads, "The constitutional amendment providing for the issuance of general obligation bonds by the Texas Transportation Commission in an amount not to exceed $5 billion to provide funding for highway improvement projects."
Kaupert said constitutional amendment elections have less than a 10 percent turnout, and that older people usually vote in high numbers.
The Secretary of State's Web site shows that constitutional elections reach more than 10 percent in rare occasions, such as the special November 2005 election that featured Proposition 2, the amendment that defined marriage as being between one man and one woman.
Turnout for that election was 17.97 percent for registered voters and 13.82 percent for the voting age population.
I voted for Kinky specifically because of this crap. I wonder what sort of kickbacks Perry and the gang are getting from this?
All things considered, there are worse things... much more expensive things, than having a governor who smokes weed with Willie Nelson. Ya think that cigar of Kinky’s is really a blunt?
It seems so. The comments I see in the article above are mostly pro-toll.
BTTT
We use the electronic toll tags on most of the toll roads in Texas now. You never slow down at all - just keep driving at 70 MPH.
How can building more roads increase congestion? Even if no one used the toll road the congestion on existing roads would be unchanged...
The picture of the tool booth above is actually an “artist’s rendering”, not the actual picture. I couldn’t find a good picture, but the ones we use, there is NO slowing down or backups at all.
The lanes are the same width as regular freeway lanes or the lanes leading into and out of the toll roads. Some of the exit toll booths are narrower, but I seldom use those.
The TxTag booths are usually in the middle of the trip and the entrances and exits I use are just like any regular freeway ramp.
I don't know who came up with the idea of HOV lanes but they should be taken out and shot.
“...run by the Spanish firm Cintra. “
The selling of America.
“Kaupert said toll roads have come about as a solution to poor planning.”
And, she said a mouthful! Why couldn’t Tx DOT have looked to the DFW area, particularly the HEB for a model??? Our kids live in Hurst and they don’t have this nightmare.
“Bunch of nonsense”
I totally agree. I hope this *professor* isn’t still teaching our children. What a bunch of mumbo jumbo!
Second, I live in NJ, where we have plenty of toll roads and bridges. I can't think of a single instance where tolls reduce congestion. They increase congestion on the roads where there are tolls simply by impeding the flow of traffic, and increase congestion on non-toll roads and bridges because some (especially trucks) avoid the tolls and create congestion elsewhere. In any case, NJ roads are so congested that tolls or no tolls really makes little difference - its all congestion all the time here.
And as someone else pointed out, enjoy the 17 cents a mile rate while you can, because you can be sure that it will double or triple in short order.
You forgot to say what happens when the toll road turns back into free road.......right back into the congestion.
Radio Moscow used to be a source of considerable amusement for schoolkids. One day they had an article about the joys of working in the salt mines, and then one about the health benefit of eating connective tissue.
No, they have robbed it to give to the public schools. Everyone pays a toll for these, even though they have no kids.
The 183-A toll road, north of Austin is 4.5 miles long and cost $1.50 (without a TexTag) and about 62,000 people use it each day It has reduced the traffic on old 183 through Ceder Park /Leander by 27%.
I guess if it’s worth saving 5 or 10 mins. on your commute (yes, that’s about all the time you save), by all means, pay the money and get out of my damn way.
Fifty years ago, the state engineers did the work, Don’t think that it the case any more. Anyway, a smaller problem developed north of Lewisville where they were supposed to building a new bridge connecting 407 and I0-35E. They got ready to build and they discovered that the plans for the east side and the west side did not meet properly.
in addition it causes pollution and wastes gas which adds to global warming. The backups at the toll booths are notorious. You can sit in bumper to bumper traffic leading to the toll booths daily around here. As well it contributes to more accidents because of the jocking for a open toll lane.
those things are great....for tracking you.
If you car gets 10mpg these roads cost you 1.7 cents per gallon of gas. If your car gets 40mpg these roads cost you 6.8 cents per gallon of gas. That's on top of the taxes you already pay for these roads.
Mpg Cents per gal toll tax
10.00 1.70 15.00 2.55 20.00 3.40 25.00 4.25 30.00 5.10 35.00 5.95 40.00 6.80
Do we really want to penalize responsible people who buy a car with good gas mileage? Wouldn't it make more sense to take a few cents a gallon at the pump and take down the toll/tax stations? I'm glad they didn't build the Interstates this way. It would have been a huge economic drag on the entire country.
Rural Texans get get road construction and maintenance in proportion to the amount of gas taxed paid in their area. That's no longer true for urban Texans.
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