CorridorWatch.org - Challenging the Wisdom of the Trans-Texas Corridor.

TxDOT Myth Versus Reality

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TxDOT Myth 1: TTC-35 will be 10 miles wide.

TxDOT Myth 2: TxDOT already knows the location of the project and will direct Cintra Zachry where to build it.

TxDOT Myth 3: By taking thousands of acres off the tax rolls, the corridor will remove thousands of dollars and cripple local governments' ability to provide services.

TxDOT Myth 4: TTC-35 will make it impossible for small communities to exist due to access issues.

TxDOT Myth 5: TTC-35 will wipe out entire towns and communities.

TxDOT Myth Number 5

TTC-35 will wipe out entire towns and communities.

TxDOT’s Response: No. TTC-35 will go around populated areas. In fact, the potential impact to communities is one of the environmental factors considered in the study. In addition, to encourage economic development along TTC-35, there will be connections from TTC-35 to communities along the corridor.

CorridorWatch: Maybe. Going around populated areas is exactly how you remove the economic benefits of a highway. With the traffic go business opportunities, tourism, and access to local revenue generators. Motorists on a toll road with a full range of traveler services will pass thousands of Texas communities, large and small. Entire towns and communities have been wiped out as a direct result of moving a railroad or moving a highway. Chances are pretty good that there are entire towns or communities that will be wiped out by the TTC.

TxDOT Myth 6: Counties will have to pay to build crossings over the corridor and residents will have to pay to cross.

TxDOT Myth 7: All land will be acquired under eminent domain at pennies on the dollar.

TxDOT Myth 8: TxDOT has the authority to condemn property for private use and operate commercial facilities associated with the Trans-Texas Corridor.

TxDOT Myth 9: TxDOT will transfer its eminent domain authority to a private entity hired to develop the corridor.

TxDOT Myth 10: All land will be owned by the Spanish government.

TxDOT Myth 11: TTC-35 will open up the borders to Mexico and allow unlimited access for Mexican immigrants.

TxDOT Myth 12: Tolls on TTC will be set at whatever Cintra Zachry wants.

TxDOT Myth 13: Traffic is not bad and can be handled by upgrading existing facilities.

TxDOT Myth 14: The Cintra Zachry contract is a big secret and no details have been made available to the public.

TxDOT Myth 15: TTC will pave over cemeteries and destroy historic properties.

TxDOT Myth 16: Large tracts of land will be taken only to wait decades for the corridor to be built.

TxDOT Myth 17: If a developer is unable to make payments to its lien holders, the road would be shut down and the state would have to bail out the developer.

TxDOT Myth 18: TxDOT has the authority to pump groundwater and strip the minerals beneath the surface.