Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Wear: Money-making tollways a good thing in Austin, not for state leaders
The Austin American-Statesman ^ | April 1, 2018 | Ben Wear

Posted on 04/09/2018 11:13:04 AM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks

All you toll road haters, limber up your fingers for the flaming responses to this column.

Because the toll road story here in Central Texas that I’m about to tell you, based on usage and revenue, is a good news story. The simple fact is that the nine toll roads here, other than the privately run section of Texas 130 south of Mustang Ridge, are being heavily used and are financially healthy.

This is certainly not the uniform case around the country, where a number of toll roads in the past decade have gone bankrupt. In Central Texas, well over 1 million TxTags have been issued, and traffic on the eight government-operated tollways is consistently growing and performing above projections. And in a region that for years has been showing up on national lists of fastest-growing areas — and high on other lists of traffic congestion — this makes sense.

But even with that growth and snarled traffic, it wasn’t a certainty 15 years ago that Austin-area drivers in great numbers would use tollways. Early last decade, when the first of them were under construction, something called the Austin Toll Party formed and there was a lot of passionate opposition to the idea that driving on a road would carry a charge.

RELATED: Looking back at the Texas toll road revolution

Then the first of the tollways opened in late 2006 and people saw the uncluttered lanes. Attitudes quickly changed.

This came up Wednesday when Bill Chapman, the longtime chief financial officer for the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority, gave his board a 10-year money forecast. Having covered the mobility authority since 2003, I knew the agency’s four toll roads (including the new MoPac express lanes) had been doing well. But even I was surprised at how brilliantly green the numbers looked.

And assuming Chapman and his staff have it right — and I think they do, directionally — the agency very quickly would have a healthy surplus to use on other transportation projects. Perhaps even free-to-drive roads. And even transit. The agency, after all, was authorized under the original state law to do more than just build and operate toll roads.

So, some numbers:

• The 183-A tollway in March averaged about 170,000 toll transactions a day (a car can rack up two or even three transactions on a single trip), about 7 percent above projections made several years ago to justify borrowing money for construction. Transactions are up 6 percent over 2017 and almost 16 percent since 2016, and they have tripled since the road opened in 2007.

• The U.S. 290 East tollway, which opened in 2013, had 87,400 transactions in March, 26 percent above projections and 22 percent above transactions two years ago.

• The Texas 71 toll lanes east of the airport, just now completing their first year of operation, had about 28,000 transactions in February (I couldn’t get March figures), about 40 percent above projections.

• The MoPac toll lanes have been averaging about 35,000 transactions a day, officials said, about 10 percent above projections. But the real difference comes in the price, which fluctuates with demand on the free lanes and toll lanes rather than being a set price as is the case with other area tollways. The average toll going northbound during the afternoon rush period has been about $5 since the toll lanes fully opened in February, about double the $2.57 projection. The rush hour average prices, morning and afternoon and in both directions, have been similarly above projections.

• And the Central Texas Turnpike System operated by the Texas Department of Transportation — Texas 130 north of Mustang Ridge, Texas 45 North, and Texas 45 Southeast — saw transactions grow by 7 percent in fiscal 2017 and revenue go up 8 percent. The 66-mile system has been operating in the black for several years.

Chapman said the mobility authority’s financial system of toll roads — MoPac, which stands alone financially, is not included — this year will have a $31 million surplus after paying off debt, several reserve funds and operating costs. That surplus figure is predicted to grow to $105 million a year by 2023. The estimated total system surplus for the coming decade: almost $840 million.

As I said, that does not include MoPac, which based on the early numbers appears to be off to a faster start financially than predicted. It also does not include the U.S. 183 South tollway, now under construction and expected to open in two phases in 2019 and 2020, or the Texas 45 Southwest toll road, which also should open in 2019.

Assuming those roads also perform well financially, as everything we’ve seen over the past decade suggests, then those surplus numbers could become even better.

All of this has come at a cost, of course. The mobility authority, counting the money borrowed to build the roads currently under construction, has more than $1.5 billion in debt, and TxDOT owes about $2.4 billion. The tolls pay for both that principal and considerable interest, along with operating costs that are higher than they would be with a free road because of the cost of processing tolls.

It would have been cheaper, project by project, to have had a higher state or federal gas tax and pay cash. But members of the Legislature and Congress didn’t choose to do that over the past quarter of a century, so here we are in the area with nine tollways, going on 11, and five more toll projects waiting for clearance to proceed.

READ: U.S. 183, I-35 projects in question as Abbott, Patrick trash tolls

Which brings up the current position by Republican state leaders on building toll roads. Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, after supporting toll roads for a very long time, are now against them. Abbott’s appointees on the Texas Transportation Commission, which governs TxDOT, have gotten the unsubtle message and have shut down all planning and funding of new tollways.

Austin’s businesses and elected leaders, meanwhile, led by state Sen. Kirk Watson, a Democrat, continue to support building tollways. Given the numbers above, and the lack of money to build huge urban highways with tax revenue, it’s not hard to see why.

People in Central Texas might not have wanted toll roads back around the turn of the century. But they want to be able to get around, and the toll roads are making that easier. So would the five projects in limbo.

We’ll see in the coming months if that matters.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Editorial; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: austin; construction; funding; gregabbott; infrastructure; revenues; spending; texas; tollroads; tolls; transportation; txlege
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-24 next last

1 posted on 04/09/2018 11:13:04 AM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks


"Does anybody have a dime?"
2 posted on 04/09/2018 11:14:49 AM PDT by dfwgator
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Austin roads suck. Have for decades. Hence the need for toll roads.


3 posted on 04/09/2018 11:23:36 AM PDT by Responsibility2nd
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Hate to break the news to these clowns, but people in Texas are simply FED UP with toll roads, which is why the state government expressly forbids new ones now.


4 posted on 04/09/2018 11:23:53 AM PDT by BobL (I shop at Walmart and eat at McDonald's...I just don't tell anyone)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: BobL

Maybe the Austin liberals, wealthy lobbyists, rich politicians and Robert Plant feel differently.


5 posted on 04/09/2018 11:27:13 AM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks (The US Constitution ....... Invented by geniuses and God .... Administered by morons ......)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: Responsibility2nd; Arrowhead1952; NYTexan; mylife; Eaker; TheMom; laurenmarlowe; El Gato; ...

Have you noticed that the tolls go up and the roads never get repaired?! I’d LOVE to see an accounting on how all that money is spent.

Pinging the Texas List!


6 posted on 04/09/2018 11:31:55 AM PDT by luvie (Our troops are the best of the best and we should honor them EVERY day!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: Responsibility2nd

I don’t think they even build toll-free roads in Texas anymore, how is this a “success” story? Texas Taxpayers are being gypped with every 4 quarters to get to/from work every day.


7 posted on 04/09/2018 11:48:08 AM PDT by broken_arrow1 (I regret that I have but one life to give for my country - Nathan Hale "Patriot")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: LUV W

Around Dallas, the tolls do go up but the toll roads are visibly being maintained. As for accounting, NTTA has that information publicly available.

Can’t speak to other toll authorities in the state, though.


8 posted on 04/09/2018 11:50:50 AM PDT by Spktyr (Overwhelmingly superior firepower and the willingness to use it is the only proven peace solution.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: Spktyr

Thanks! Good to know that some roads are being maintained and upgraded!


9 posted on 04/09/2018 12:08:24 PM PDT by luvie (Our troops are the best of the best and we should honor them EVERY day!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Another advantage for toll-roads is it keeps the unwashed masses off and also out of state visitors who have no toll tags and the toll roads don’t accept money.


10 posted on 04/09/2018 12:41:52 PM PDT by Saltmeat
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Saltmeat

I suspect a lot of illegals drive the tollways and never bother paying. Many of them do not have drivers licenses so why pay for driving?

I would like to know how much goes uncollected by the toll authority.


11 posted on 04/09/2018 1:57:47 PM PDT by dominic flandry
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: All; BobL
Pflugerville City Council calls for resumption of Texas 130 [widening] project (4/8)

From article: The widening project was suspended indefinitely by the Transportation Commission after Gov. Gregg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and some other Republicans in November called to shut down all planning and funding of new tollways across the state.

Oops.

12 posted on 04/09/2018 2:02:20 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks (The US Constitution ....... Invented by geniuses and God .... Administered by morons ......)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: LUV W

See #12.


13 posted on 04/09/2018 2:03:50 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks (The US Constitution ....... Invented by geniuses and God .... Administered by morons ......)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: dfwgator

LMAO. Reminds me of Tollroad 130.


14 posted on 04/09/2018 2:06:06 PM PDT by TADSLOS (Alex Jones isnÂ’t quite the wing nut now, all things considered.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: LUV W

I would hope they wouldn’t need too many repairs being 12 years old or less...Other than striping, signing and collecting tolls, they shouldn’t have much in the way of operating costs.


15 posted on 04/09/2018 2:10:35 PM PDT by shotgun
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

183 vs. toll road 183A is a joke. I have no problem it taking 4 minutes longer to save whatever they’re charging to go on the toll road.


16 posted on 04/09/2018 3:26:32 PM PDT by bgill (CDC site, "We don't know how people are infected with Ebola.")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Thanks.


17 posted on 04/09/2018 4:47:41 PM PDT by luvie (Our troops are the best of the best and we should honor them EVERY day!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: Saltmeat
Another advantage for toll-roads is it keeps the unwashed masses off and also out of state visitors who have no toll tags and the toll roads don’t accept money.

Says someone unfamiliar with the system.

You are wrong on both counts.

Bills get mailed to the address associated with the license plates, but enforcement is minimal for deadbeats and out of staters.

Top 10 scofflaws owe NTTA more than $1.2 million in unpaid tolls, fines
https://www.dallasnews.com/news/transportation/2011/07/17/top-10-scofflaws-owe-ntta-more-than-1.2-million-in-unpaid-tolls-fines

For the top scofflaws, the amounts owed exceeded $100,000 each at the time of that story. But note that the story refrains from naming names.

18 posted on 04/09/2018 5:19:22 PM PDT by PAR35
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

At least it ain't Cali.

19 posted on 04/09/2018 5:25:37 PM PDT by deadrock
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

I have converted. Sadly. I first came upon toll roads in Chicago and they drove me nuts. However, time is money. I can drive between I-10 and toll road 45 in less than half an hour at 90mph. Going up SH 123 and I-35 would take at least an hour or more determining the day and time.

HOWEVER, this toll road is only 4-5 years old and they have one lane shut down half the distance for repairs already. Wonderful!


20 posted on 04/09/2018 8:17:45 PM PDT by Misplaced Texan (July 4, 2009 - the first day of the 2nd Revolution!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-24 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson