Got that?
"Tax Increase" is what the man said, and let's not let him forget it!
First he sponsors a bill that looks great, but which he has no intention of ever letting come to an actual vote, and then he lets slip he really wants tax increases!
In the first article above, it is mentioned that construction costs are going up 10-12% per year, and since the built-in tax increase would be tied to increases in construction costs, the gas tax would increase at 10-12% per year.
Kinda like the "tax increase" they'll get when they can redirect the existing gas taxes to other stuff and let Texans pay for roads at the toll booth.
I'm amazed that there are Texans that think paying for roads twice, once at the gas pump, and again at the toll booth, is better than just raising the fuel taxes a bit. Or even better, spending 100% of the gas taxes on roads instead of using some for other stuff.
By definition, Texans will pay for the roads they drive on one way or another. It makes more sense to have just one method of extracting money from drivers at the gas pump, instead of gas pump AND toll booths.
If Texas politicians are incompetent at building and maintaining roads, they can be defeated at the ballot boxes. But a private monopoly on a road on a particular route can't be changed for 50 years, whether the company is competent or not (and since there can be no competition, what is their motivation to be competent?).