Freeways aren't free, and Texas politicos don't want to pay

The Houston Chronicle ^ | January 3, 2018 | Houston Chronicle Editorial Board

[EQAndyBuzz]

“Swinging Door?”

Haven’t been there in a long time. Are they still there? What about Schulze’s?

I still think Makeska’s in Columbus has the best Sunday BBQ Buffet. My son and I met Jerry one time. He was in his Tux and walking around the restaurant. Think at the time he was 94 and still driving his pickup truck.

[Milton Miteybad]

45,59, Ih10, Highway 6, 290, 610, 288, LaPorte Freeway etc are not toll roads, they are traffic nightmares, but not Toll Roads.

Only the HTR, Parts of Beltway 8 and the Grand Parkway are to my knowledge toll roads down here.

There are managed toll lanes (called the Katy Tollway) running from Katy to Loop 610 you can take if the mood strikes. If you want to pay the toll, you can zip past the traffic in the free lanes.

[USFRIENDINVICTORIA]

It’s very apparent that you have never actually worked on a heavy construction project.

[Dalberg-Acton]

I-45

[sciencewriter86]

[25% of the Motor Fuel Tax money in Texas is diverted to schools.

25% of the Motor Fuel Tax money is Texas is diverted to other agencies.

And, that does not even count bike paths, etc.]

Funny thing about gas taxes.

In my old state of Washington the gas stations—all self service unlike Oregon’s—posted the price of gas AND the tax bite right on the pumps. In a very short time the legislature had the cost of taxes/gallon removed from the pumps by law.

And, in Washington, the gas tax money goes into the “General (tax) fund,” where it goes to social services and every thing else the politicians fund for their parasitic friends, who are often illegal voters.

[PAR35]

45,59, Ih10, Highway 6, 290, 610, 288, LaPorte Freeway etc are not toll roads, they are traffic nightmares, but not Toll Roads. Only the HTR, Parts of Beltway 8 and the Grand Parkway are to my knowledge toll roads down here.

Westpark is toll. But add US 59 and I69 to the free ones.

[ro_dreaming]

JoSixChip wrote:
There is not a major thoroughfare in the Houston area that is not a toll road.

I LIVE here, and, what? There are a few toll roads here, the Sam Houston Tollway (Beltway 8), the Hardy Toll Road (expressway from downtown to IAH and The Woodlands), 99/Grand Parkway, and the Fort Bend County Toll Road. They are putting in a toll road on 288 (Downtown to basically Hwy 6 to the South). That’s it. There is no East/West toll (I-10), Loop 610 is no toll. 59 is no toll. Now, there is a toll for the HOV lanes, if you’re less than the prescribed number of people.

My toll bill is about 10 bucks a month.

#N8tiveTxn

[jhastey]

As a Texan, the reason that the proposals failed was that they included funding for toll roads. Toll roads are hated here in TX because if our tax dollars are going to pay for the road (which they invariably do on toll roads), then we refuse to pay each time we go down a road that our tax dollars have already funded.
As also stated, we have been spending too much on non-highway projects like bike paths, carpool lanes, and the like when the funding instead could have gone to fixing/expanding the road network.