Category: General

Former City Planning Director says we don't need tolls roads!

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Link to Express-News article here.

Dave Pasley: S.A. needs more roads, not toll booths
12/21/2005
By Dave Pasley

The only thing left to debate about the fix for traffic congestion in the U.S. 281 and Loop 1604 corridors on the North Side is how to pay for more lanes in the existing roadway alignments. It’s either tolls or taxes.

All other practical options have been precluded because of deep flaws in the city’s political and development practices.

Ten years ago there was excess capacity on U.S. 281 and Loop 1604. Today there is gridlock. How is it possible to screw up these two highway corridors so badly in just 10 years? How can a city without enough traffic to warrant an HOV lane suddenly have so much congestion it needs a toll road?

The short answer is that we have not provided for any connectivity during the development process. In other words, you can’t get from Point A to Point B on the far North Side without getting on Loop 1604 or U.S. 281. The only east-west route connecting Interstate 10 and Interstate 35, between Loop 410 and Texas 46 in Comal and Kendall counties, is Loop 1604.

Developers have been allowed to blanket the far North Side with limited access subdivisions without providing an interconnected roadway system to support them.

Consequently, commuters on their way to work are mired in traffic jams with cross-country travelers. School buses jockey for road space with 18-wheelers.

This Loop 1604-U.S. 281 predicament should not be a surprise to anyone because essentially the same thing happened to Loop 410 and U.S. 281 in the 1970s and 1980s. The Wurzbach Parkway was conceived in the mid-’80s to provide an east-west alternative route midway between Loop 410 and Loop 1604. Unfortunately, 20 years after its conception, the Wurzbach Parkway is still not complete.

In January 1996, when I was the San Antonio planning director, I wrote a report to the Metropolitan Planning Organization urging the development of east-west alternatives to Loop 1604. Following is an excerpt from that report:

“Short of securing these important east-west routes through the development process, the only alternatives are for the taxpayers of the community to bear the cost and inconvenience of retrofitting arterials after development has occurred, or to endure the hardships of an inadequate major thoroughfare system.

“The city’s current experience with the cost and construction of the estimated $90 million twelve mile Wurzbach Parkway across the northern portion of the community presents a clear example of the huge financial consequences associated with the failure to secure adequate east-west arterial movement through the development process.”

They were prophetic words then, and they are still valid today. Simply put, the North Side needs more roads, not necessarily bigger roads.

It would be great if politicians had the spine to limit development on the recharge zone or if the bulk of consumers of new housing wanted to live in transit-oriented, high-rise developments. Changes in either of those mind-sets would go a long way to resolving the Loop 1604-U.S. 281 mess.

In the interim period, while we are waiting for hell to freeze over, I suggest the City Council assign two tasks to the new city manager:

1. Complete the Wurzbach Parkway ASAP.

2. Make San Antonio developers provide a network of arterial streets as they do in Phoenix.

Dave Pasley was San Antonio planning director from 1992 to 1996.

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Governor’s response to concerned citizens

Here’s how this letter is misleading to the public.

Page 1
Paragraph 1 –
Right out the gate he claims the non-toll lanes we drive on today will not be tolled. THIS IS FALSE! There is NO WAY they can lay 8 toll lanes in the current median without disturbing the lanes we drive on today. We’ve been to the public hearings and we have seen TxDOT’s plans. They are, in FACT, tolling our existing lanes! The new access roads they’re building will be the ONLY non-toll option. The non-toll lanes will NOT be in the same location (right of way) we currently drive on today for FREE, so it’s clear they’re tolling our existing FREEway leaving us only access roads as non-toll! TxDOT’s own internal presentation in 2003 (PDF file) shows they plan to force motorists onto tollways through limiting alternatives including slowing down the free lanes.

Paragraph 2 –
He justifies tolls by saying fuel efficiency means people drive without paying their fair share of gas tax. There have already been bills before Congress to tax alternatives fuels for this reason. Also, gas tax revenues (available on the Comptroller’s web site) from 1984-2004 have actually increased 178% while population has only increased 50% (and that’s adjusted for inflation). Also, no matter how you slice it, the more folks drive, the more gas they use and the more tax they pay. There’s a built in trigger for those who drive more, they automatically pay more.

Paragraph 3 –
It states $1 in local tolls is a dollar for local needs. How is that true when the Victoria Transit Policy Institute determines toll roads have a 25-35% average administration cost and then these public-private partnerships (CDAs) will take a guaranteed level of profit from the toll lanes? We don’t know the exact level of profit being guaranteed because they’re suing our government to keep this information from the public. I venture to guess it’s close to 45% of money from toll revenues will never be applied to local needs.

Page 2
Paragraph 1 –
Prop 15 that he refers to that was passed in 2001 mentions toll roads as an OPTION, but nowhere does it tell the public that on Dec. 18, 2003 the Transportation Commission would pass a toll first mandate (if they can prove it viable, they’re going to toll it without considering other alternatives).

The exact wording of that proposition is:

“The constitutional amendment creating the Texas Mobility Fund and authorizing grants and loans of money and issuance of obligations for financing the construction, reconstruction, acquisition, operation, and expansion of state highways, turnpikes, toll roads, toll bridges, and other mobility projects.”

The voters passed this with 67% of the vote, and it was sold to them as allowing TxDOT to borrow future gas tax revenues in order to speed up highway projects (versus simply pay as you go funding). Nowhere is a toll-only mandate mentioned in that proposition. It’s disingenuous to say 67% of voters want toll roads! In fact, TxDOT’s own study by UT Austin shows over 70% of Texans are against the tolling of existing highways. The RMA’s recent survey by Baselice & Associates (which had very leading questions and even false information about the toll plans PDF file), still shows that over 70% of San Antonians want other options to pay for highway improvements other than tolls!

Paragraph 2 –
The free alternatives he mentions are frontage roads, not alternate highways like Houston and Dallas have. By the way, Dallas and Houston voters got to vote on those toll projects and keep all the money local, not so with this new power grab by TxDOT. Now even Dallas and Houston folks are upset at TxDOT’s bullying tactics. These cities are being told to use public-private agreements (CDAs) where the toll money goes to private, foreign corporations, not local needs! Read about it here.

Paragraph 3 –
The approach here seems straight from Governor-appointed Transportation Commission Chairman Ric Williamson…it’s his famous quote, “It’s toll roads, slow roads, or no roads” (El Paso Times, May 5, 2004), reworded to make it seem more palatable. It’s toll it or you don’t get your improvements. They’re withholding funds from San Antonio and other cities unless they toll these projects. Where are all the gas tax revenues going? TxDOT’s own budget for 2004 shows not even 15% of their revenues going to road maintenance. It shows $1 billion for road maintenance out of a $6.1 billion budget. San Antonio only receives $100 million in gas tax revenue each year out of a $6.1 billion budget! In addition, all of us are forced to pay the cost of tolls through the increased cost of goods, so we truly don’t have a non-toll choice. We ALL pay!

Also, ALL motorists have paid gas taxes to build 281 and other planned toll projects. Every toll lane proposed uses some gas tax money to build it (MPO minutes prove it along with an article on WOAI’s web site that quotes Commissioner Lyle Larson) and yet we cannot drive on these roads without paying a double tax, a toll tax for our lifetimes! The December 1 Express-News article confirms, 93% of the 281 project is funded with gas tax money (the $6 million not paid for with gas tax is paid for by CPS utility company so rate payers still pay that cost) so what the Governor states in this letter is false. We can get our improvements without tolls, but now they’re tolling projects that are already paid for, too!

HB 2702 is the law he refers to that says they cannot toll existing highways with out a vote of the people. This is misleading since the law states the Transportation Commission can overrule any vote by finding that a toll project improves the mobility of the region. Plus, US 281 was declared a toll project prior to September 1, 2005. Of course, this the ONE time TxDOT dotted all their “i’s” and crossed all of their “t’s.”

See text below:
Portion of HB 2702 that addresses converting existing highways into toll roads – SECTION 2.36. Chapter 228, Transportation Code, is amended by adding Subchapter E to read as follows: SUBCHAPTER E. LIMITATION ON TOLL FACILITY DETERMINATION; CONVERSION OF NONTOLLED STATE HIGHWAY Sec. 228.201. LIMITATION ON TOLL FACILITY DESIGNATION. Except as provided by Section 228.2015, the department may not operate a nontolled state highway or a segment of a nontolled state highway as a toll project, and may not transfer a highway or segment to another entity for operation as a toll project, unless: (1) the commission by order designated the highway or segment as a toll project before the contract to construct the highway or segment was awarded; (2) the highway or segment was open to traffic as a turnpike project on or before September 1, 2005; (3) the project was designated as a toll project in a plan or program of a metropolitan planning organization on or before September 1, 2005; (4) the highway or segment is reconstructed so that the number of nontolled lanes on the highway or segment is greater than or equal to the number in existence before the reconstruction; (5) a facility is constructed adjacent to the highway or segment so that the number of nontolled lanes on the converted highway or segment and the adjacent facility together is greater than or equal to the number in existence on the converted highway or segment before the conversion; or (6) the commission converts the highway or segment to a toll facility by: (A) making the determination required by Section 228.202; (B) conducting the hearing required by Section 228.203; and (C) obtaining county and voter approval as required by Sections 228.207 and 228.208. Sec. 228.2015. LIMITATION TRANSITION. (a) Notwithstanding Section 228.201, the department may operate a nontolled state highway or a segment of a nontolled state highway as a toll project if: (1) a construction contract was awarded for the highway or segment before September 1, 2005; (2) the highway or segment had not at any time before September 1, 2005, been open to traffic; and (3) the commission designated the highway or segment as a toll project before the earlier of: (A) the date the highway or segment is opened to traffic; or (B) September 1, 2005. (b) This section expires September 1, 2006. SECTION 2.37. Section 362.0041, Transportation Code, is transferred to Subchapter E, Chapter 228, Transportation Code, redesignated as Sections 228.202-228.208, and amended to read as follows: Sec. 228.202 [362.0041 ]. COMMISSION DETERMINATION [CONVERSION OF PROJECTS ]. The [(a) Except as provided in Subsections (d) and (g), the ] commission may by order convert a nontolled state highway or a segment of a nontolled state highway [the free state highway system ] to a toll project [facility ] if it determines that the conversion will improve overall mobility in the region or is the most feasible and economic means to accomplish necessary expansion, improvements, or extensions to that segment of the state highway system.

Money Trail

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When it comes to finding the motivation behind the tolling efforts we have to just follow the money trails…

ZACHRY JR, H B – CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD – ZACHRY CONSTRUCTION COMPANY

H B ZACHRY CO/ZACOPAC – Construction Company and PAC

DAWSON JR, MR & MRS EUGENE H – CIVIL ENGINEER with PAPE-DAWSON ENGINEERS

LOEFFLER JONAS & TUGGEY – VIA Board Member

Note: The links in this entry open a new browser window and go to “The Institute On Money In State Politics” web site (followthemoney.org).

USA Today: Governments salivate at cash pay-outs in return for private control of public highways

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Link to article here.

Toll roads with a cash-out option
Governments look at leasing highways to private sector
By Dennis Cauchon
12/15/05
USA TODAY

State and local governments are singing a new tune in operating toll roads: selling or leasing them for cash and letting private companies run them.

The governments plan to use money from the transactions to build new roads, repair old ones or pay for other programs.

The idea has caught fire since Chicago leased its Skyway — an 8-mile elevated highway that carries traffic from the city to the Indiana border — for $1.8 billion in cash to Spanish and Australian investors in January.

The Skyway had lost money for decades and only recently had turned profitable, generating $40 million in tolls and $20 million in profits last year. The price for the 99-year lease was more than twice as much as any other company bid.

Now other governments around the country are examining what their toll roads are worth and wondering whether they can get a Chicago-style windfall — or at least a good deal.

“A toll road is a wonderful financial asset, and we need money for roads,” says Charles Schalliol, director of Indiana’s Office of Management and Budget.

It’s hard to say how private operation of a toll road would change life for the motorists who use it because each deal is different. Potential benefits: The private ventures might operate and maintain the roads better than government can. Possible negatives: Rising tolls that could push traffic onto local streets.

Some deals being studied:

•The Indiana Toll Road. This 157-mile interstate across northern Indiana connects to the Chicago Skyway. The state is soliciting bids that are likely to top $2 billion. Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, a Republican, wants to spend the money on new roads, including extending Interstate 69 fromIndianapolis to Evansville.

•Harris County, Texas, toll roads. The county operates 83 miles of toll roads in the Houston area that could be worth more than $10 billion. Investment banker Goldman Sachs told county commissioners in September that the system could generate a $7 billion upfront payment.

•The Dulles Toll Road. Virginia plans to lease this 14-mile road near Washington, D.C., for 50 years. The state is studying four bids of about $1 billion each. The bidders also promise to pay for improvements such as express lanes on the busy commuter road. Virginia may use the cash to help build a rail line between Washington Dulles International Airport and the region’s subway system.

Other states are weighing the idea. Delaware Gov. Ruth Miner, a Democrat, is awaiting a task force recommendation on whether to privatize the state’s toll roads, including a 24-mile stretch of Interstate 95. New Jersey Gov.-elect Jon Corzine, a Democrat, has said he is open to considering leasing parts of state toll roads such as the New Jersey Turnpike. The issue also has been raised in California and Wisconsin.

The wisdom of privatizing roads depends on the specifics of the deal, says David Schulz, director of the Infrastructure Technology Institute at Northwestern University. He says the 99-year lease of the Skyway was a great deal because of the extraordinary price.

“The Skyway has been a money-losing headache for city government for years. I know. I used to run it,” says Schulz, former Chicago deputy public works commissioner. He says he’s confident that the new management can run the road better, enabling the city to focus on other matters.

Chicago has managed its windfall prudently so far, saving most and paying off old debts on the Skyway, he says. He doubts that other governments will get such huge bids, “but you never know until you put it up for auction.”

Skeptics of privatizing toll roads worry that communities will lose control of their road systems.

“We have concerns about fairness,” says Mark Eagan, president of the St. Joseph County, Ind., Chamber of Commerce. His group fears that a private operator will raise tolls and push traffic onto local streets and that the state will spend its money on projects elsewhere in the state.

In Texas, Harris County Commissioner Steve Radack says it would be shortsighted for his county to give up toll revenue of more than $1 million a day.

“The toll roads belong to the people of Harris County,” Radack says. “We manage it well and need this money to shape our future.”

But Harris County Judge Robert Eckels, the county commission’s top elected official, says leasing part or all of the system could provide more than $10 billion for road construction. “The biggest issue in transportation today is how to pay for it,” Eckels says. “We need to look at the whole range of financing possibilities.”

He agrees that loss of control is the disadvantage of privatizing toll roads. “But the amount of money Chicago got for the Skyway — that got folks’ attention. How can you not look at the value of your toll roads?”

A few private toll roads have been built in Virginia, California and Texas since 1995. But efforts to privatize existing toll roads are new.

Options range from outright sale of roads to long-term leases that last 25 to 100 years. A private company could do everything — maintain roads, operate rest stops, pay for police — or just run the toll booths. A contract could limit future toll increases or require discounts for local residents — moves that may be popular but would lower the road’s economic value.

Private toll roads are common in some countries, says Peter Samuel, editor of TollRoadsNews, a Web newsletter. Italy privatized its state toll authority a decade ago, and France has three publicly held toll road companies. Foreign investors should have a lot of interest in U.S. toll roads, he says.

“The Chicago Skyway opened a lot of minds,” Samuel says. “That $1.8 billion is a big hunk of money.”

Carter Casteel runs away from her record of tolling

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It’s always interesting to watch a politician who has sold out his/her constituents in favor of special interests back pedal in an election year…Rep. Carter Casteel, District 73, is officially one of them. She’s on Mike Krusee’s Transportation Committee, voted to toll us for FREEways we’ve already paid for, voted AGAINST accountability to the voters for tolling, and had her colleagues at the Comal County Commissioners Court convinced she was against tolls. Well guess what? We’re happy to spread the word about her very UN-conservative record. Comal County and the other rural counties in her district are all dependent on highways to get into San Antonio to go to work. In fact, 67% of Bulverde residents commute into San Antonio EVERY DAY, the majority of them take US 281 which is scheduled to be the first toll road in SA!

Sorry, Carter Casteel…the cat’s out of the bag. We know the truth about your record and we’ll be shouting it from the rooftops to make sure you don’t go back to the legislature to betray us again! One of the questions in the survey revealed her record voting to toll existing freeways and further proliferate tolls.

Read about it here:
In the Quorum Report, scroll down to the story. Full story available to subscribers only, but you get the idea. Lead text below…

CASTEEL RESPONDS TO NEGATIVE “PUSH POLL”
State Representative Carter Casteel (R-New Braunfels) responded today to a “push poll” being conducted in House District 73, which includes Bandera,Comal, Gillespie, and Kendall Counties. The polling questions misrepresented Casteel’s conservative values and voting record as a member of the Texas House of Representatives.”I have had many calls about the ‘push poll’ conducted last week,” Casteel said. “‘Push polls’are political telemarketing, not public opinion surveys. The ‘poll’ questions were designed tomisrepresent my conservative values and voting record as your state representative.””I have always had an ‘open door’ policy. If you want to know where I stand, just ask,” Casteel said.

RMA votes to spend $300,000 on PR Campaign to "Sell" Tolls

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Another display of sheer unbridled power today at the Alamo RMA (tolling authority appointed by Bexar County Commissioners). Business as usual for them, astounding display of total disregard for the public interest for us! The Board unanimously voted to allocate $300,000 of public money for a PR campaign to push tolls on San Antonians (who have made it clear that they don’t want them)! That’s against the law! Write to your legislator and have him/her ask the Attorney General Greg Abbott to stop it. The condescending tone we heard from Judge Wolff in his State of the County address continued today at the meeting as the RMA opined about how the public doesn’t understand the toll plans and how tolls will accelerate projects (which is a patently false, US 281 improvements have now been delayed by TxDOT for 3 years to turn it into a toll road PLUS bonds and pass through financing can accelerate projects without TOLLS). They spoke about San Antonians like they were sheepish school children who simply needed to be “educated” about their sinister scheme to DOUBLE TAX us to drive on our FREEways so that we’d drink their Kool-Aid, lay down, and accept our fate!

Here are some quotes I scribbled down during the meeting:
“That $300,000 won’t go far, clearly it’s only the beginning,” said Chair Bill Thornton as HNTB and Taylor-West, who were present, smiled as they get to drink from the public trough without limit, apparently (sure, Mr. Thornton, it’s always easier to spend other people’s money rather than your own). He had the audacity to quote from their push poll released on October 12 that was filled with falsehoods and misleading questions that claims 62% of Stone Oak residents want the tolling of 281! I told him we have more people in our database in those zip codes on record AGAINST the tolls than the total number of people they polled! I believe we have 8 times more people on record against tolls than they polled in that “survey.” That survey asked direct and very blatant political questions and it was paid for with public money See previous blog analyzing survey in detail here. Link to actual survey which is also on our home page. So now the RMA has twice misused public money for political purposes AGAINST THE LAW. Clearly, this agency believes its operating above the law which mirrors what Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn found in her investigation of the RMAs released in March like lax expenditure controls, favoritism and self-enrichment.See the report here.

“This is not a public meeting; it’s a Board Meeting,” said Bill Thornton as he and Commissioner Larson’s appointee, Bob Thompson, wouldn’t allow me to make my statement in one time segment (nor allow others to donate their time to me), but made me split my comments into 3 separate “speeches” under specific agenda items to dole out my 3 minute allotments in drips and drops (which is a change in format from last time. We’re seeing the same tactics at the MPO…changing the rules as they go to suit them and showing no deference to the public despite this being the ONLY time these appointees hear from the public about these multi-billion dollar life-altering decisions!). If this isn’t a public meeting then why are they subject to Open Meetings statutes? I always figure,if my tax dollars are paying their salaries and for their “perks,” then we have a right to have our voices heard in a coherent fashion!

“Judge Wolff has supported us and continues to; he’s one of the few who has backed us from the beginning…” said Bob Thompson, Commissioner Larson’s appointee, to his shocked constituents in attendance! Thompson is clearly not on the same page as the commissioner who appointed him since he said “us.” He sees himself as one in the same with his pro-toll appointees! He went on to defend the letting of the 281 project. Acknowledging they made a conscious decision to move forward with that toll project saying the user pays for improvements. I later challenged him on that since the December 1 Express-News article (See article here) clearly states the 281 project is paid for with gas tax money so it’s not the toll lane users paying for the improvements, it’s ALL of us and yet we can’t drive on it without paying a lifetime of tolls! I also pointed out how Commissioner Larson has been quoted in the paper and in other media as stating that’s one of his problems with the toll plans…the hefty amount of gas tax money going to fund them (not private money as we’ve been led to believe) .

“We’ve had some favorable press. Has anyone talked to Pat Driscoll (Express-News transportation reporter) about this? (the PR campaign and how to best get their message out to the public),” said General McBride, Commissioner Tommy Adkisson’s appointee. Note McBride, too, says “we”–he sees himself as being one with the pro-toll crowd though the commissioner who appointed him doesn’t agree with the RMA’s acquiesence to TxDOT’s tolling of existing freeways.

So there ya have it, a glimpse into your government working against your best interests and against your expressed will! We also found out 6 people have signed the non-disclosure and confidentiality statements required by the two foreign companies bidding to control our highways. Signing them allows them to see the contracts but they cannot disclose what’s in them to the public nor even discuss it with ANYONE who hasn’t also signed them (inclduing elected officials). See the Express-News article about it earlier this summer, and note Chip Haass’ quote against the CDAs yet he voted against transparency and accountability at the MPO.

This process violates open, transparent government and ought to send chills down the spines of every freedom loving American! So only these 6 people know what’s in the proposed contracts and they alone have the authority to negotiate the non-compete agreements that allows these companies to neglect the free lanes for up to 20 years (to force people onto the tollway) and set the toll rate formula that, as I understand it, guarantees the private companies a certain percentage of profit. The non-compete agreements were what got Trey and Ricci Ware, father-son KTSA 550 AM radio talk show hosts, off the fence as they lambasted the toll plans as a sham on the air earlier this month.

Your County Commissioners & Legislators need to hear from you!

Call or email Lyle Larson at 210-335-2613 or lylelarson@bexar.organd Tommy Adkisson at 210-335-2614 or tadkisson@bexar.org and encourage them to have their appointees more accurately reflect their positions and tell your legislator (Find your legislator here) that you don’t want public money going to PR campaigns to push tolls on FREEways (ask them to get Attorney General Greg Abbott involved)! If they want to toll highways, do it on completely new roads and WITHOUT tax money, and leave our FREEways, FREE! Send any and/or all of your correspondence as a letter to the editor here: letters@express-news.net.

Letters to the Editor hit it out of the ballpark!

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With the exception of one letter whose author seems to misunderstand the lawsuit to stop 281, the Letters to the Editor in the Express-News today hit all the major points! The message is getting out there, thanks to all of YOU!

As to Peggy’s concerns…TxDOT has not complied with existing law and they have FAILED to do the proper environmental impact statement required for this project. TxDOT and YOUR elected officials have IGNORED the public outcry about this project and have left the voters no choice but to bring this into court to force them to follow the law and offer alternatives to this toll road scheme they’re ramming through without a VOTE! Those improvements we so desperately need on US 281 have been delayed by TxDOT (not concerned citizens and we have TxDOT’s plans to prove it) for two years already to turn it into a massive, excessively large 16 lane toll corridor. The ONLY reason for turning this 12 lane project into a 16 lane project is to make it a toll road. They’re adding 4 extra lanes and building a bottleneck at 281/1604 just to get us to pay toll taxes. They’re paving these 4 extra lanes over our sole source of water which is highly vulnerable to vehicle emissions because of the lack of natural filtration with a karstic aquifer.There are serious, legitimate concerns about the impact of this project. The lawsuit forces them to put forth and consider alternatives to this toll project.

TxDOT’s ORIGINAL plan was set to begin work in 2004 and would be near completion already. Your safety concerns would already be addressed if TxDOT had stuck with their less expensive, less invasive ORIGINAL plan for 281, but now they want to empty our pockets with totally uneccessary toll taxes for generations. BOTH of TxDOT’s plans are FULLY PAID FOR with YOUR GAS TAX money. It’s indefensible as to why they’d toll an exitsing highway and a highway where even the improvements are paid for as well. We should NOT have to pay a lifetime of toll taxes on a highway that’s already PAID FOR. Because they refuse to do the fiscally and environmentally responsible thing according to the law, they will now answer to a judge.

Great letters Mike, Dave, Jeff, and Santiago! Tollers, including Judge Wolff, need to be escorted from office next year!
Read the Letters to the Editor here.

MPO failing to lead

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Here are my remarks successfully delivered to the MPO Board Members at today’s meeting though Mayor Jack Leonhardt and Senator Leticia Van De Putte tried to stop me from proceeding:

I’m glad to see all of our elected officials here today. We’re also glad to see this toll mandate being dictated to Texans is finally making some front page news. What’s been revealed in these articles puts our concerns in black and white. The improvements to fix the congestion problems on US 281 are 100% paid for with tax dollars.

Careful scrutiny of the words in the article that appeared in the Express-News December 1 (Link to Dec. 1 story in the Express-News) reveals many of the dirty little secrets about these toll plans that few people understood until now (when details finally make front page news). TxDOT has been saying we have no money for roads…yet there it was IN PRINT, $77 million in gas tax money dropped out of the sky to build an excessively large toll corridor–16 LANES–, when all that’s needed is 4 overpasses at the lights and it’s all done in less time for almost half the money ($48 million).

Also in that Dec. 1 article we find out they’re ADDING TWO MORE TOLL LANES in addition to the 4-6 toll lanes they revealed in the public hearings. In total, TxDOT wants to pave 16 lanes in the widest parts of the plan! This information has been kept from the public. BY YOUR OWN POLICY #5, you must tell the public about those extra toll lanes because they substantially change the scope of the project approved by the MPO. What we’ve been told by TxDOT as recently as the September 8 public hearing is that there would be 4-6 toll lanes and 4-6 frontage lanes. That would equal 12 lanes in the widest parts. Now that number is 16 lanes! There are laws governing this entity and TxDOT and we expect you to follow them. This information must be revealed to the public in a specific format.

In fact, this MPO, the ARMA, and TxDOT are in a heap of legal troubles already, do you honestly think the public is not watching and that you can get away with this illegal activity?

To get back to the project for a moment…so you would have us believe you have the money to build US 281 as a toll road (that’s nearly twice the cost), but you don’t have the money to build it as a free road? Note how the article states foreign companies are vying for these “most lucrative toll lanes” in the plans! I’ll say lucrative, that’s because the private firms aren’t paying a DIME of the cost to build and then they get to charge us tolls for the next 50 years!

OK, let’s make this real simple. Toll roads cost more to build & maintain, only about half of all motorists can afford to drive on them while 100% of taxpayers are footing the bill to build it, we’re being charged THREE times to drive on the same stretch of pavement (taxed to build existing freeway, taxed to pay for the improvements, then lifetime toll tax to drive on it), you want to charge us THREE taxes to drive on our highways elsewhere throughout town (gas tax, ATD sales tax, and tolls), the toll money is going to a foreign corporation for the next 50 years, and our elected officials are DICTATING this to us without a vote of the PEOPLE!

TxDOT’s figures and, more importantly, their rationale for this toll first mandate MUST BE CHALLENGED by this body who is charged with protecting our local interest. What’s the rationale behind these projects and why aren’t the costs of these GIGANTIC tollways being challenged? We found, in one of TxDOT’s own toll feasibility studies, the cost of toll gantry equipment at $1 million per MILE! We found projects where the cost of toll equipment equaled the cost to build the road. One of their studies showed 1604 improvements could be paid for 100% with bonds, and yet you’re tolling it.

We’re currently taxed approximately 3 1/2 cents a mile (on average according to graphic that accompanied Dec. 1 story) under the gas tax system. The national average for a traditional turnpike is 9 cents a mile, what on earth do they need with 14-39 cents a mile (I have the feasibility studies that show rates of $1 to use the new toll-only interchanges)? With 5 cost estimate changes on the toll starter system since June and the bait and switch change in toll rates found in the Austin plans, the public doesn’t trust the toll rates they’re quoting for 281 and the toll starter system.

I believe the burden is on YOU, our tolling authority, and elected officials to be above reproach at every turn, for your motives to be about the public good and not lining the pockets of private interests at the public’s expense, and for TxDOT’s figures and misstatements to be vigorously challenged.

What they’re doing on 281 defies common sense, good government, transparent government, and good fiscal policy. You bet this meets with tremendous public opposition. THEIR rationale MUST be challenged! We’ve put forth a good faith effort to bring alternatives to the table with our limited resources.

Let’s look at some of the alternatives to tolls put forth by SAMCo, for instance. EVERY alternative to tolls is LESS money! The hike in vehicle registration they mention is $100 a year compared to an average of $3,000 a year in tolls (this figure comes from TxDOT’s own online survey that quoted 29 cents a mile for a 20 mile commute on 1604 which equals over $3,000 a year just to drive to and from work). The claims that they’d have to raise the gas tax $1 is completely UNSUBSTANTIATED and would amount to quadrupling their current state gas tax revenue intake. The 25 cent per gallon increase is also less than tolls. Considering the average San Antonian uses roughly 1500 gallons of gas a year, they currently pay $300 a year in gas tax. Even a 25 cent hike would be less than tolls at $375 a year more, which is more than double what we give the state now. The size of this tax increase is also totally unsubstantiated in my mind–DOUBLE!–what do they need double the money for? Even an increase in property tax that they mention would be less than the $3,000 a year in tolls for most taxpayers.

If they get rid of just these toll equipment not to mention the toll lanes (that only half of all motorists can use) and just build what’s needed, the road is 40-100% less money to build and EVERYONE can drive on it. So the simple solution sure seems to be to CAN the toll lanes and vastly reduce this fictional $8.4 billion funding gap which is also unsubstantiated. SA gets $100 million a year in discretionary funds currently, they’re saying we need FOUR times the money we currently get (their $8.4 billion figure works out to $420 million a year over 20 years). The entire state of Texas gets $6.1 billion a year and they say SA needs $8.4 billion over the next 20 years? SA is number 5 in number of lane-miles per person in the U.S…how much money and how many roads do they think we need?

TxDOT known for waste, mismanagement
There are also questions about the legitimacy of TxDOT’s expenditures. Twenty states have lower gas tax than we do. Texas is second only to California in terms of disbursements. Caltrans spent $9.3 billion while TxDOT spent $6.8 billion. CA has a greater population than Texas, so it works out to be that Caltrans spent $259 per person to TxDOT’s $306 per person. Caltrans spent 24% of it budget on local roads and TxDOT only spent 6.5% on local roads. TxDOT spends $88 more a person than Caltrans spent on its road system, and remember CA is more populous!

According to the father of toll roads who publishes the Toll Road News wrote this just before Prop 9 went down in flames…“In Texas the tollers are behaving arrogantly and with extraordinary political ineptitude. They are over-reaching. Why six year terms for toll authorities? Four year terms would provide some insulation from sudden political change while constituting a more normal term of public office. There’s something sleazy too in that term ‘regional mobility authority’? It’s a toll authority. Why run away from that? Only people without the courage of their convictions or who are too tongue tied to explain themselves resort to silly euphemisms. Does it fool anyone anyway? Political support in TX has also been sapped by a bewilderingly unprincipled and unexplained intermixing of funding of projects by TxDOT. Wherever they go there’s a furor because no one can figure out who’s paying for what. They talk privatization but so far it is all politics as usual…TxDOT’s promiscuous approach to raising funds and their promotion of projects without even a semblance of study has been the anti-toll groups’ major recruiter.”

They’re asking us to pay $27.6 million PER MILE for a 3 mile stretch of improvements! I’m hard-pressed to find ANY highway project that expensive throughout the country and yet none of you are challenging these costs!

Look-up a report done by the Texas Public Policy Foundation in 1997 called, Sundown on Big Government. It was the last external audit of TxDOT. It shows that TxDOT is fraught with millions of dollars in waste and mismanagement, including stockpiling asphalt, gas, and other supplies. Some reforms have been made, but until TxDOT has an independent audit and these bureaucracies get their own houses in order in a way the public can trust, we should not be asked to pay a lifetimes of tolls for roads we’ve already paid for WITHOUT A PUBLIC VOTE!

First article in series tackles flawed road funding claims

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Link to today’s story in the Express-News. The article was on the front page entitled, Gas taxes can’t fuel all road projects.

At first glance, this article, the first in a series of more in-depth articles on the toll issue, seems to project more of TxDOT’s mantra, “We’re out of money.” But I do think Driscoll tries to make a fair assessment of the arguments. With that said, I do take issue with a few of the statements made in the article. Write a letter of response here: letters@express-news.net.

Setting the record straight…

TRUTH is on OUR side!
More than anything else, this issue is NOT about he said-she said, it’s about the TRUTH! I disagree wholeheartedly with the statement that both sides have stretched the truth. Our figures about the gas tax revenues are taken right from the Comptroller’s own web site. They’re not our figures, they’re the State’s! We’re simply challenging the figures TxDOT puts out there. We don’t have the funds to conduct studies of our own, we have to rely on information available in the public domain.

Gas tax figures accurate
What we’re stating is a verifable fact: gas tax revenues have gone up at rate of 178% while population growth has only gone up 50% in the last 20 years (and that’s adjusted for inflation to reflect differences in buying power over that time period). The more people drive, the more taxes they pay under our current system (the more you drive, the more gas you buy, and the more tax you pay no matter what your fuel efficiency is…and in Texas, we drive gas guzzling SUVs and pick-ups not fuel efficient Yugos and Hondas and the changes in SUV fuel efficiency have been very modest), so this myth about alt fuels and fuel efficiency doesn’t hold up. We just saw an article the other day saying there’s already a proposal to tax alt fuels. Our politicians will NOT let new or alternative fuels escape taxation that’s needed to help pay for transportation improvements.

It’s about politicians IGNORING the will of the PEOPLE!
It seems the real story here is about our politicians IGNORING the will of the people and failing to represent us. It’s citizens having to battle their own elected representatives who WORK FOR US. We’re not funded by anybody, we’re not financially backed by any organizations. To my knowledge, no one has any conflict of interests whatsoever. We are ordinary citizens trying to take our government back from these highway interests who have muddied the waters of the public process. We have brought up more than enough concerns, detailed concerns backed-up by facts ALL FOUND IN PUBLIC DOCUMENTS, to warrant at the very least an independent review of the toll plans. If this is truly the ONLY way to fund our roads, then it should hold up to public scrutiny and the truth will bare that out. The people are asking for a say, for a vote, on such a fundamental shift in our taxation to the tune of $3,000 or MORE per year, PER COMMUTER (from TxDOT’s own online survey they conducted through Survey Cafe used to be found at: http://www.surveycafe.com/sanantonio/passwordr.asp, but they pulled it down, but we have a picture of it even though they took it off the web…in it they quoted a citizen 29 cents a mile for a 20 mile commute on 1604…that’s $5.90 each way, that’s substantial money to get to work)!

EVERY alternative to tolls is LESS money!
Even SAMCo’s alternatives are ALL less money per year than would be tolls. The hike in vehicle registration they propose is $100 a year compared to an average of $3,000 a year in tolls. The claims that they’d have to raise the gas tax $1 is completely UNSUBSTANTIATED and would amount to nearly tripling their current intake. The 25 cent per gallon increase is also less than tolls. Considering the average San Antonian uses roughly 1500 gallons of gas a year, they currently pay $300 a year in gas tax. Even a 25 cent hike would be less than tolls ($375 a year more, which is double what we give the state now, the size of this tax increase is also totally unsubstantiated in my mind–DOUBLE!–what do they need double the money for?).

If they get rid of just these toll lanes that only half of all motorists can use and just build what’s needed, the road is 40-100% less money to build and EVERYONE can drive on it. So the simple solution sure seems to be to CAN the toll lanes and vastly reduce this fictional $8.4 billion funding gap which is also unsubstantiated. SA gets $100 million a year in discretionary funds currently, they’re saying we need FOUR times the money we currently get (their $8.4 billion figure works out to $420 million a year over 20 years if I did the math right). The entire state of Texas gets $6.1 billion a year and they say SA needs $8.4 billion over the next 20 years? SA is number 5 in number of lane-miles per person in the U.S…how much money and how many roads do they think we need?

TxDOT’s figures MUST BE CHALLENGED!
What’s the rationale behind these projects and why aren’t the costs of these GIGANTIC tollways being challenged? We found, in TxDOT’s own toll feasibility studies, the cost of toll gantry equipment at $1 million per MILE!. We found projects where the cost of toll equipment equaled the cost to build the road. They also studied toll feasibility to toll all the mainlanes on 1604 and backed off. One of their studies showed 1604 improvements could be paid for 100% with bonds, and yet they’re NOT doing it.

The national average for a traditional turnpike is 9 cents a mile, what on earth do they need with 14-39 cents a mile (I have the feasibility studies that show rates of $1 to use the new toll-only interchanges)? With 5 cost estimate changes since June and the change in toll rates found in Austin, the public doesn’t trust the toll rates they’re quoting for 281 and the toll starter system. No investment grade traffic and revenue study has even been completed yet for US 281. That will tell the true starting toll rates. Given all this, none of TxDOT’s claims seem to withstand scrutiny.

Public NEEDS side by side comparisons
The public needs to see some side by side comparisons of the actual figures, not scare tactics like property tax hikes. Tolls are equivalent to more than many folks’ property taxes, so let’s play fair when talking about options. SAMCo and the politicians know ANY talk of property tax hikes is out of the question since people are already upset about not getting property tax relief this last session. But gas taxes, they assume, are equally untouchable, but not once you do the math…like the figures above. Gas tax or vehicle registration fee hikes are STILL less than a lifetime of unbridled toll taxes!

Politicians, under the veil of TxDOT, have LIED to the PUBLIC!
What ought to come to light is how the proponents of this plan have and continue to LIE and mislead the public. Bill Thornton said on multiple occasions on the radio that the original $48 million for the overpasses on 281 were GONE, ZIPPO! Then he said they were re-allocated (to 281/410 interchange) on a different occasion. Tom Greibel told our Founder, Sal Costello, on radio that NO tax money was going into these toll projects, then later slipped and said there was. David Casteel also said the funds were re-allocated and then changed his tune once I got a hold of the feasibility studies. Now we find out that what is in the feasibility studies is true, that $48 million in gas tax IS being used to build US 281 as a toll road instead of as a free road like TxDOT’s told the public for 5 years (plus an additional $29 million dropped out of the sky to build it as a toll road, bringing the total amount of gas tax in the toll project to $77 million!).

David Casteel has told the Comal County Judge in writing that they will not toll US 281 through Comal County for 25 years (in June, I believe). In less than 4 months, he told the Bulverde City Council in September at a public City Council meeting that they plan to toll it in 10-15 years. Julie Brown of TxDOT said at the September RMA meeting that they were adding an extra non-toll lane to the project, but the truth lies more in what they don’t tell you…they were adding 2 more toll lanes, too, but they’ve kept it from the public. BY LAW they must tell the public about those extra toll lanes because any change in the scope of projects approved by the MPO must be revealed to the public in a specific public format. The Alamo RMA (tolling authority) also ILLEGALLY used public money they used to conduct a political survey (see past blog entry on this subject). They are also violating the Bexar County Commissioners resolution to NOT toll existing highways. The list of lies, half truths, misleading information, and illegal dealings keeps getting bigger…

Concerned citizens shouldn’t be compared to POLITICANS!,
There are no hidden agendas here. We don’t represent ANY lobby but the public good. We’re about advocating good government and good fiscal policy. This toll road plan does neither. I do not think when tackling this issue that genuine concerned citizens should be impugned or somehow put on par with politicians. I believe the burden is on our PUBLIC tolling authority and politicians to be above reproach at every turn, for their motives to be about the public good and not lining the pockets of private interests at the public’s expense, and for THEIR figures and misstatements to be vigorously challenged.

What they’re doing on 281 defies common sense, good government, transparent government, and good fiscal policy. You bet it meets with tremendous opposition. THEIR rationale is what ought to be challenged! We’ve put forth a good faith effort to bring alternatives to the table with our limited resources. These PUBLIC agencies work for us and are funded by us and they DO have the resources to come up with common sense solutions that serve the public good. They haven’t because they’re not required to by the entities who are charged with keeping them accountable to the public.

TxDOT known for waste, mismanagement
Look-up a report done by the Texas Public Policy Foundation in 1997 called, Sundown on Big Government. It was the last external audit of TxDOT. It shows that TxDOT is fraught with millions of dollars in waste and mismanagement, including stockpiling asphalt, gas, and other supplies. Some reforms have been made, but until TxDOT has an independent audit and these bureaucracies get their own houses in order in a way the public can trust, we should not be asked to pay a lifetimes of tolls for roads we’ve already paid for WITHOUT A PUBLIC VOTE! This toll plan on existing highway US 281 will set a precedent, a dangerous one. If we let them get away with this, this plan will be duplicated all over the state and likely all over the country. We’re not going to let that happen!

Just a few of the comments from our supporters…

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Comments that came in after the December 1 article hit the front page…

—“Shame on our elected officials. This is corporate tyranny at its worst. Did our new Troll Masters donate any money to our benevolent ‘elected officials’??? We need some hangings here in Texas, starting with the Tollers who’ve sold their soul to the devil. When they complete our freeway improvements, the toll plazas shall be pushed aside like the trees that have fallen. FREEWAY OPEN!! Thanks for all you’re doing – keep the faith!!”

—“What can I do to help?”

—“what can I do right now? I read the article and I am sick about it. “

—“Maybe this has been addressed – maybe not! As I understand this operation a private company will build and operate these toll roads. There will be right of way takings I’m sure. The State will step in and condemn private propety and turn it over to private companies to operate their business. Is this correct? If so this is a federal constitutional issue.
Thank you for your work on this issue. I support you and wish you success.”

NOTE: He’s right, they’re taking our private land and leasing it back to private corporations. We need to litigate this aspect, absolutely since our politicians are ignoring the will of the people on this and REFUSE to take action!

—“i even read in the paper that in washington they are
looking at a driving tax-the more you drive the more
you pay!
god bless

—“i think we need to band together and buy air time on tv-and
run infomercials telling the american people what
they are planning to do to us-the toll roads-i go down
281 all the time-and the national tax by the mile
driven-maybe we might even have a state tax on miles
driven also-these politicians are constantly thinking
up new ways to tax us.”

Letters and comments about Judge Wolff’s statements in his State of the County address…

—‘Judge Wolff:

I was surprised to hear of your remarks in the state of the county address yesterday, especially in light of Gov. Perry’s very secret negotiations with a firm from Spain and his refusal to provide details to the citizens.

If you review the information posted on TexasTollParty.com you will find that the average cost to each Bexar County family will be more than $3000.00.

I want a say-so if our state government wants to take $3000.00 from me and I’ll bet my neighbors feel the same way.

I am running as a Democratic Candidate for State Representative in District 122. Part of my platform is to put all toll roads in Texas on the ballot, out in the open. This issue is not a done deal, and I will not accept it. I truly hope that you will not accept it, either. I ask that you take a stand against this kind of secret deal, starting with the secret deal to create toll roads right here in Bexar County. Let the people in Bexar County decide if they want to pay for toll roads.” – Larry Stallings

—“Mr. Nelson Wolff,

Having heard your interview on WOAI yesterday, I am disappointed regarding your general remarks about toll roads. Your remarks seemed to indicate an “indifferent attitude” towards your constituency in Bexar County.
I don’t think your remarks reflect what the majority of folks in Bexar County believe – that toll roads are not a viable solution to our traffic congestion issues.

It is unfortunate that you choose to basically parrot the views of TXDOT without any regard for really understanding the entire issue of toll roads. As a lifelong resident of San Antonio and Bexar County, I am concerned that we are going to impose a system which basically serve as a hardship to the average San Antonian wage earner. I am fortunate to be well compensated, but I know that the mean wages for San Antonio fall somewhere in the range of the mid $20’s and thus the potential costs of utilizing toll roads will certainly lead to more congestion along our access roads. Briefly looking at the history of toll roads, they have not really eased traffic congestion issues – rather they have been a mechanism for generating more revenue for local and state government entities. Is your mantra really about increasing the size of the government in Texas?

As a representative of this county government, I would trust that you would want to assure that the citizens of this area are effectively served by any solution posed by TXDOT or any other state entity. But from the gist of your comments on WOAI yesterday, I surmise you’re more interested in assuring you remain well-liked by your fellow state politicians. From my standpoint, that is quite unfortunate.”

—“Dear Judge Wolff:

I respectfully disagree with your opinion of toll roads in San Antonio. I drive 281 daily and I can see that the only problem with that freeway is that it has been turned into a city street with the addition of lights at major intersections. All that is needed to relieve congestion is a bypass system where the lights now exist. This would be much more cost effective than a huge toll road project. I don’t think I want to “get used to them”.

I’m sure that after you examine the facts, you too will agree that a toll road system will only serve to anger the public even more. We already have too many taxes imposed on us. Most of the public has reached an intolerable level of taxation, and now with gasoline prices going higher I can feel a very strong movement to rollback taxes and to remove all politicians that do not actively seek to reduce public expenditures. We see it with the anger against school districts for abusing public funds and we will see it with the toll roads, as well.

I fear that this debacle will ultimately bring San Antonio’s economy to a screeching halt. For example, I am a systems analyst making a fair salary and paying a hefty amount in taxes every year. But that doesn’t seem to satisfy our city leaders’ hunger for more money. Every year my taxes are raised 10%. I am tired of fighting this, as are many others in similar or lesser jobs. I now have my house for sale and I plan to relocate outside of Texas in order to maintain a living in the manner in which I have become accustomed. Perhaps for a good cause I could accept the increase in taxes, but all I can see is corruption, mismanagement, misappropriation, misuse and asinine projects like the toll roads, so I can no longer stomach giving away my hard earned money to a bunch of idiots and/or thieves. It’s too late for me, but I ask you for those who may remain a while longer. Please use some foresight and join the fight against the toll roads before you single handedly crater this economy and get run out of town on a rail.”

—“I am outraged that Judge Wolff dictated “Tolls are coming so get used to them.” Judge Wolff and the business community plan to profit from this toll road scheme and will push their agenda without a vote from the people of SA. Why should we the people of this city carry the load on our backs to finance Bexar County when the roads have already been paid for? Judge Wolff and the business community want to give private companies monopolies over our public infrastructure through secret agreements. This violates the public trust and our principles of open government. Toll roads amount to highway robbery of the citizens. Let the higher public officials take a cut in their salaries and benefits! We the common, hard-working people of SA refuse to carry the weight! We will not support public officials who refuse to listen to our voices. You can bet the voters will find viable candidates to run against tollers. We will take action to vote out those politicians trying to steam-roll their deals over the already over-taxed people of Bexar County!”

—“Dear Judge Wolff,

I respectfully oppose your position on toll roads… I don’t believe you should shove anything down the public’s throat and I think you would find this to be true if you put toll roads up for a vote…This toll road plan is a very bad one, especially when you are using roads which have already been built with taxpayers money… In my book, that’s double taxation…I also can’t believe once the so called improvements would be paid for, that this defective plan never relinquishes the toll from the road… REALLY BAD PLAN…So, if you really did say: ‘Tolls are coming so get used to them’ I resent the implication that it is a done deal and we, the public, can’t do anything about it…I would love to see a signed contract, from TxDOT, showing where all this work has been approved and who will be building these so called toll roads… Maybe you can produce one for the public’s perusal…”

—“Judge Wolff, I respectfully say you are wrong in dictating toll roads for our city and boasting they are coming to SA whether or not the public wants them. You as our public official should represent the wishes of the people of SA. If you cannot listen to our voice, then we will vote in someone who will respect the opinion of the people. You have enjoyed a grand style life and are out of touch with the common people. You have lost sight of the truth and are using your position to deceive and force toll roads onto the people of SA. I oppose your governing methods and stand on this issue.”

—“But the tides of history are turning. Wolff and all the rest of those professional elites will be the last ones to figure out how disconnected from the people they have come. But just you watch – incumbents are going to go down in flames all over the place in the 2006 elections, and they won’t even see it coming because they’re so out of touch.”

—“keep up the fight-judge wolff is rich-he can afford toll
roads-they could get to like 5.00 to go on them i have
heard others say-with gas as high as it is-and if
registration fees go up and they get those 35.00 car
inspections-pretty soon us poor people will not get to
drive our cars-and they are a necessity in the modren
world-you have to be able to get to work”

Sent to candidate for Governor Carole Strayhorn’s campaign and forwarded on to us…

—“i rang up nelson wolfes office and they confirmed it- the toll road is to go in on a 6-8 mile stretch of highway 281 north, just outside of loop 1604. its going to be operational in late january. i asked why we weren’t allowed to vote on the matter and i was told that local governments aren’t allowed to hold referenda on state mandated projects, and that i had to contact my local reps, who are the ones who voted for it on my behalf. lunacy. balderdash.

the argument was that the gas tax wasn’t high enough and also that revenue was being lost due to more fuel efficient vehicles. i countered that there a lot of other ways to generate revenue for roads rather than the gas tax, and rattled off about 20 ways to generate cash and just got a blank stare over the phone.

anyway, its official, and i think its illegal.

if i could make any suggestion to the campaign it would be to alert the public to the trans texas corridor and what a cultural disaster it would be, not to mention being totally unecessary. nobody but insiders and concerned experts like you & me know about this thing right now, and word needs to get out. as you know, the only way the bad guys ever win is when we don’t network.

holler back if you get a second, and please give my best to your Mother.

tell her she has my vote, along with the votes of my circle.”

WORD OF CLARIFICATION: The toll road will not be operational in January, construction of the road begins in January. There is no toll agreement for US 281 at this time and the earliest a toll would be charged is after construction is finished in 2009.