NC Legislature to debate toll funding

The issue of whether or not the state of North Carolina should help fund the $20 million gap for the Triangle Expressway toll project will take center stage within the NC General Assembly and Senate over the upcoming weeks.

In a WRAL-TV report Friday night, more detail was given on the upcoming legislative debate on toll financing. The North Carolina Turnpike Authority estimates that there is a $20 million gap in costs to built the highway and revenue they will receive in tolls.

If the measure isn't passed - lawmakers hope to have a decision made by July 16 -, the NCTA says the project - and as a result other projects like the Cape Fear Skyway - will be in jeopardy.

“Without the gap funding, the project certainly is in question,” said Steve DeWitt with the Turnpike Authority.

“There are other ways to do it, although they’re not quite as palatable. Private market, through a public-private partnership, is an option. It's not the best option for this state, but it is an option,” said DeWitt.

The private-public partnership idea may see more discussion in the upcoming weeks. It is used elsewhere worldwide (South America and Europe) and the idea has been gaining more momentum within the United States.

There are concerns on the concept which includes a concessionaires agreement between the state and the private investment. Are the tolls to be regulated etc? Control of maintenance etc.?

Obviously, the decision of the General Assembly will have a great impact on the future of toll roads and toll financing within the state. A 'no' vote does damage the prospect of toll highways being built, but it doesn't kill the idea altogether. A 'yes' vote means the Triangle Expressway is very likely going to be built as a toll road, and it breathes life into other toll projects. It's going to be an interesting couple of weeks.

Comments

I-40 rockslide uncovers old debates on highway

The Asheville Citizen-Times continues to do a great job covering all the angles of the Interstate 40 Haywood County rock slide. An article in Sunday's edition provides a strong historical perspective on how the Pigeon River routing of Interstate 40 came about. And perhaps most strikingly, in an article that ran just prior to the highway's opening in the fall of 1968, how engineers from both Tennessee and North Carolina warned "...that slides would probably be a major problem along the route for many years." On February 12, 1969, not long after the Interstate opened, the first rock slide that would close I-40 occurred. Like many other Interstates within North Carolina, Interstate 40 through the mountains has a history prior to formation of the Interstate Highway System and was also a heated political battle between local communities. The discussion for a road that would eventually become Interstate 40 dates back to the 1940's as the idea for interregional high

Mines Road

Mines Road is an approximately twenty-eight-mile highway located in the rural parts of the Diablo Range east of the San Francisco Bay Area. Mines Road begins in San Antonio Valley in Santa Clara County and terminates at Tesla Road near Livermore of Alameda County. The highway essentially is a modern overlay of the 1840s Mexican haul trail up Arroyo Mocho known as La Vereda del Monte. The modern corridor of Mines Road took shape in the early twentieth century following development of San Antonio Valley amid a magnesite mining boom. Part 1; the history of Mines Road Modern Mines Road partially overlays the historic corridor used by La Vereda del Monte (Mountain Trail). La Vereda del Monte was part of a remote overland route through the Diablo Range primarily used to drive cattle from Alta California to Sonora. The trail was most heavily used during the latter days of Alta California during the 1840s. La Vereda del Monte originated at Point of Timber between modern day Byron and Bre

Former California State Route 41 past Bates Station

When California State Route 41 was commissioned during August 1934 it was aligned along the then existing Fresno-Yosemite Road north of the San Joaquin River. Within the Sierra Nevada foothills of Madera County, the original highway alignment ran past Bates Station via what is now Madera County Road 209, part of eastern Road 406 and Road 207. Bates Station was a stage station plotted during the early 1880s at what was the intersection of the Coarsegold Road and Stockton-Los Angeles Road. The modern alignment bypassing Bates Station to the east would be reopened to traffic during late 1939. Part 1; the history of California State Route 41 past Bates Station Bates Station was featured as one of the many 1875-1899 Madera County era towns in the May 21, 1968, Madera Tribune . Post Office Service at Bates Station is noted to have been established on November 23, 1883 and ran continuously until October 31, 1903. The postal name was sourced from Bates Station owner/operator George Ba

Gribblenation

Search This Blog