Land grab fears (Trans-Texas Corridor)

A recent poll posted at KeepTexasMoving.org, shows that visitors to the site consider land acquisition as the most pressing issue needing to be addressed regarding the planned Trans-Texas Corridor.

Visitors to the site chose acquisition of property by an overwhelming 64 percent of the vote, with 14,280 votes.

The next highest vote was for connectivity to cities with only 12 percent, or 2,659 votes.

The Web site is published by the Texas Department of Transportation to release information regarding the planned Trans-Texas Corridor.

The Trans-Texas Corridor is a large transportation plan envisioned by Gov. Rick Perry and TxDOT to provide high-speed lanes for personal vehicles, trucks and rail to criss-cross the state over the next 50 years. The roadways will be constructed using future tolls on the road.

The recent poll has received 22,288 total votes, making it the highest ranked poll on the site in terms of total votes.

Visitors to KeepTexasMoving.org are allowed to vote once in the poll, which appears on the front page of the Web site.

In August 2006, Perry told the Waxahachie Daily Light that the TTC would be a multi-pronged solution to the state’s transportation needs.

“(As governor) It is a multi-pronged view that you must have,” Perry said. “There’s dealing with transportation infrastructure - which is the reason why four years ago I laid out a plan to deal with the congestion, air pollution, safety issues and the Trans-Texas Corridor subsequently became statutorily the law of the land, if you will. And now it’s being constructed.”Perry also touted the TTC as the first plan for the state’s transportation needs in the last 20 years.

“For 20 years there were people who looked at it and just scratched their heads and said, ‘Well, we’ll try to keep up and keep these roads open that we have,’” Perry said. “But there were no plans to create new infrastructure in the state. Economic growth as well as degradation of our environment and degradation of our citizen safety was about to become very pronounced in this state.”

After accepting public comments from 54 public hearings across the state last year, including two in Ellis County, TxDOT has begun the environmental impact study for the proposed north to south toll road.

And in late September, TxDOT released a plan proposing the first phase of the Trans-Texas Corridor, TTC-35.

The plan includes a connection to Interstate 35 south of San Antonio and a loop surrounding the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Pending final environmental clearance to determine the ultimate alignment of TTC-35, TxDOT has reported that construction could begin by 2011.

Under the master development plan, Cintra Zachry, a consortium led by Spanish and Texas firms, has suggested that the toll road extend south of San Antonio, connecting to I-35.

In North Texas, the toll road should connect to I-35 north of Dallas-Fort Worth and according to the plan, run all the way to Oklahoma.

Also included in the master plan is the southern section of Loop 9 around Dallas Fort Worth, a project that has been under study since the 1960s.

A definitive route between Hillsboro and Loop 9 has not been determined but early plans suggest a possible route through Ellis County, between Waxahachie and Ennis, a route through the Highway 360 corridor, or a route to the west of Johnson County.

In July, the Ellis County Commissioners joined the North Central Texas Council of Governments in support of a resolution to move the corridor from the eastern half of the county to the Highway 360 and Loop 9 corridors.

Ellis County, along with the cities of Carrollton, Cedar Hill, Dallas, Duncanville and Lancaster, have each passed resolutions recently supporting the Highway 360 alternative.

The court passed a second resolution in mid-November to encourage the Texas Legislature to re-examine the legislation surrounding the development and construction of the TTC.

The September report released by TxDOT indicates private investment could potentially be worth $8.8 billion with additional concession fees to the state for other transportation projects possibly reaching $1.9 billion.

TxDOT is currently reviewing comments and input gathered at the public hearings from last year. The comments will be addressed in a report to the Federal Highway Administration, which must give approval to the plan before plans for TTC-35 can advance to a second phase, or Tier Two level.

TxDOT anticipates that it could be four years before a final alignment for TTC-35 could be approved by FHWA.

Loop 9 unveiled

MIDLOTHIAN — Massive maps were unrolled and Ellis County got a first look last week at two routes for Loop 9, a proposed six-lane toll-road that would run east and west across north Ellis County.

Texas Department of Transportation engineers and project administrators hosted a public meeting at the Midlothian Conference Center to allow property owners and area residents to look at initial plans for the project and ask questions about the estimated $1.8 billion, 44-mile project that could see right-of-way acquisition begin in two years.

“What we are showing this evening are two alternative routes and we are seeking public input on which would be the best route,” said Mike Nesbitt, Loop 9 project manager. “We are also seeking input on what we are call-ing ‘no-build.’ That would be for the state to build nothing.”

Local property owners and residents gathered around two 20-foot-long maps that showed a northern and southern route. The project begins north of Seagoville and heads south before turning west and moving north of Ferris, Red Oak, Ovilla and Midlothian.

Both the northern and southern alternative have the proposed highway crossing U.S. Highway 67 North near Skyline Acres and U.S. Highway 287 West near Padera Lake.

“We have a number of milestones on this project,” said Nesbitt. “We will have a final series of public hearings in a year and should obtain a record of decision in about two years. At that point we would begin obtaining right-of-way.”

Nesbitt said if the project moves ahead the state would break ground on Loop 9 in four years and vehicles could be driving on it by 2015.

The project also has to obtain environmental and design approval before any of that happens.

Nesbitt urged residents to contact local and state leaders with their concerns. He also urged people to look at the maps, plans and information at www.Loop9.org.

Loop 9 is not the Trans-Texas Corridor, although highway officials have repeatedly said Loop 9 could take a similar track as the proposed TTC. Loop 9 is also being designed and proposed as a feeder-road to the TTC should it be built.

Loop 9 will be a toll-road. Being a private project has allowed the process to move faster than a state or federal construction project that has to wait on government dollars.

The Midlothian meeting was the second of two public meetings this month. The first meeting was held at Seagoville High School on Jan. 16.

Nesbitt said the idea of a major highway encircling the Metroplex is not new.

The Greater Dallas Planning Council first identified the concept of an outer loop freeway around the Dallas metropolitan area in 1964. In 1968, the Texas Highway Commission authorized this outer loop around Dallas and designated it as part of the highway system to be known as Loop 9.

The project languished for a number of years. Nine months ago TxDOT was told to develop plans to build and complete the project in 20 years. The southern sector, which would impact Midlothian, would probably be built first.

TxDOT has joined Dallas County as a partner in completing the draft environmental impact statement by December 2006. Due to the work already completed on the study, the region — and especially southern Dallas County cities — may be able to capitalize on an opportunity to get the project built faster as a potential connector to the Trans-Texas Corridor-35.

“The southern link is the farthest along,” said Eddie Haas, project manager for Parsons Transportation Group. “We expect a decision by 2008 from the federal government on its support from the project. At that point TxDOT would get right-of-way and we would go to work.”

Following direction from the task force, the proposed corridor has changed from a parkway configuration to a facility with three toll lanes and two to three access lanes in each direction within a 430-foot right-of-way. The study consultant, Parsons, is conducting detailed investigation of conceptual design changes and of corridor connectivity and operations.

Parsons is refining the original alignments to reflect the TxDOT requirement of 85 mph design specifications.

“It will not be posted for 85-mph,” Haas said. “But the curves and exits will be engineered and designed to 85-mph speeds.”

Engineers are designing the route so it will cross highways 67 and 287 at right angles.

Loop 9 has two projected paths. The southern-most path would cross Holcim quarry.

Holcim officials have pointed out Holcim has owned that quarry for 20 years and infringing on the quarry could reduce the plant’s lifespan as much as 10 years.

Midlothian Mayor Boyce Whatley said the project could define Midlothian’s northern border and fuel economic growth and development.

“The frontage roads have the potential for economic development as do the interchanges - of which we could have two,” Whatley said. “We are looking at how this affects our ETJ with Cedar Hill and what areas are currently in the city limits and what areas are strictly county.”

Developers are already snapping up property along the proposed route.

The Loop 9 Feasibility and Route Alignment Study was authorized in 1995. The limits of the study corridor were defined as the proposed extension of State Highway 360 in Ellis County to Interstate 20 in Mesquite.

The North Central Texas Council of Governments initiated a similar effort for the corridor continuing west of Highway 360 to beyond Interstate 35W near Crowley.

In 1997, study efforts resulted in a “technically preferred alignment” that was approved and/or adopted by many of the cities and agencies involved in the study. However, due to some problems with the preferred alignment, study efforts were suspended before a “locally preferred alignment” was identified.

The present day Loop 9 study picks up where previous study efforts left off, studying the original alignments as well as newly identified alignments, and incorporating new federal mandates pertaining to the development of an environmental impact statement.

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