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Your posting is a little different than mine.

A couple of things worth noting in your posting:

1) This company will "build and maintain" this new toll road (and, I guess, somehow make money).

2) We don't get to see the contract until it's signed, sealed, and delivered. That's real nice. I guess we can start complaining after we see what our wonderful governor has committed us to. Here's what to look for:

a) State guarantee of a specific return on investment (with taxpayers being stuck if the road is a White Elephant)

b) Non-compete Clause: California was unable to find any investor for a set of toll lanes running right down the middle of the horrendously-clogged freeway SH 91 (possibly the worst in CA) unless they committed the state to not building or upgrading anything (freeways or surface roads) that ran parallel to SH 91. When California had to add a three quarter stretch of a single lane - they were SOL and wound up having to take over the entire toll road, just to be able to add that stretch.

c) Tolling for I-35, or some other restrictions. I-35 cannot be allowed to compete with this toll road, or the toll road will never make a penny. Something will have to be done - somehow, to protect the new toll road.

We get to see all of that AFTER the governor has signed the contract - seems to me that we have a dysfunctional state.

Finally, watch out for the governor's shills, they're into personal attacks now.

Final post (before going to work):

To believe that there will not be any non-compete clauses, one would have to believe that Governor Hutchison in 2007, or any future governor will not simply raise the gas tax a bit and then widen the existing I-35 (adding 2 lanes in the cities, and 1 lane between the cities) - and thereby driving this toll road in bankruptcy.

You would be making that bet with $7.2 Billion on the line. It ain't gonna happen.

As one who only occasionally must drive I-35, I think this sounds like a great idea.
Maybe this toll road will be what the interstate highway system once hoped to be: a way to get around the country without having to dawdle through every Middlesex village and town.

I'd gladly pay to be able to avoid driving through Dallas or Ft. Worth on the way south toward San Antone or the Hill Country.