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

TxDOT Announces
Significant Change of Plan:
Separate TTC-69 Corridor Dropped
In Favor of Following Existing Highways

This morning, Wednesday, June 11, the Texas Department of Transportation held a press conference to announce that they are now "recommending that the I-69/Trans-Texas Corridor Project be developed using existing highway facilities wherever possible." This is a tremendous victory for opponents of the TTC and especially property owners who were in the path of the original 1,200-foot corridor.

The official press release reads, "Citing Public Recommendation, Project Would Follow Existing Roads." TxDOT is acknowledging the overwhelming public opposition to TTC-69. That's a good public relations position and certainly appreciated by anyone running for office in November, but it lacks sincerity at TxDOT. Faced with pressure from state and federal officials, an unhappy Sunset Advisory Commission, and a pending report from the State Auditor, it was time for TxDOT to find something they could give up. Or something they could 'appear' to be giving up. Hello TTC-69.

The new kinder, smaller I-69/TTC is a welcome move in the right direction, but it's not all roses. Tomorrow's announcement will remind us that all new lanes will be toll-lanes. The project will continue to be a public-private partnership that will drive tolls to the highest level possible to generate as much revenue as possible from the motoring public. While this move to scale back TTC-69 to a much more reasonable project let's not forget about TTC-35. More than 14,000 Texans turned up at public hearings in central Texas to personally object to that project, just as stridently as those along the TTC-69 corridor. In 2006, the then Transportation Commission Chairman Ric Williamson declared that Perry's TTC-35 trumps such opposition. Apparently it still does.

Now would be a good time for TxDOT to demonstrate that their TTC-69 announcement is much more that just public relations. It's time for TxDOT to throw the towel in on TTC-35 and narrow that study area as well. Commissioner Houghton touts that public involvement and local commitment are essential and we agree. So lets take a step back and restart the discussion about TTC-35 and give the citizens and communities along that corridor the same respect as those along TTC-69.

TxDOT Executive Director Amadeo Saenz tells us that he has written a letter to the Federal Highway Administration and told them, "The preliminary basis for this [TTC-69]decision centers on the review of nearly 28,000 public comments made on the Tier One Draft Environmental Impact Statement. The overwhelming sentiment of these comments focused on the need to improve the existing transportation network" rather than building a new corridor for the project.

CorridorWatch Calls On TxDOT To Drop
Separate TTC-35 Corridor In Favor of Improving I-35

Given today's statement, CorridorWatch has called on Mr. Saenz to review the equally overwhelming opposition sentiment of the comments made on the Tier One Draft Environmental Impact Statement for TTC-35, and to write another letter to the Federal Highway Administration telling them that TxDOT recommends that the TTC-35 Project be developed using existing highway facilities wherever possible and that the consideration of new corridors that would run east of IH-35 be dropped. [letter]

As with I-69/TTC, TxDOT should focus on making needed improvements to existing and planned transportation facilities within the I-35 corridor.