VICTORY NUMBER ONE! The Federal Highway Administration DELAYS 281 asking for further review!
Working together with (ofttimes unlikely) partners in a cross-partisan effort to stop the tolling of existing highways, People For Efficient Transportation (legal arm of Texas Toll Party) and AGUA (Aquifer Guardians) along with many of you as individual plaintiffs, have DELAYED the tolling of 281! The Federal Highway Administration, who is also named in our lawsuit, took one look at all of TxDOT’s missteps and has withdrawn their environmental clearance for 281 and is forcing TxDOT to perform a better assessment (and hopefully with our help a full IMPACT STATEMENT) of the impact of a 16 lane toll corridor right up against homes and over our sole source of water!
Most importantly, they’re requiring more public hearings which will lead to putting more alternatives on the table, like using TxDOT’s own original plan for 281 to put 4 overpasses at the stop lights and get traffic moving. The original plan is less expensive, less invasive and quicker than the toll plan, AND it doesn’t DOUBLE TAX us for an existing FREEway or put storefronts out of business.
Just do it!!! No excuses or more delays-Bring in Caltrans, they will fix this mess(281&1604) in a heartbeat. I like to know where all of the property tax dollars are being spent, with all of these new homes and businesses going up everyday! There should be no excuses about shortages of monies to fund these projects. We all know how much and how many different taxes we pay. Where is all of our money going?