|
|
Challenging the Wisdom of the Trans Texas Corridor.
|
| TxDOT Myth Versus Reality | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
TTC-35 will be 10 miles wide.
TxDOT already knows the location of the project and will direct Cintra
Zachry where to build it.
By taking thousands of acres off the tax rolls, the corridor will remove
thousands of dollars and cripple local governments' ability to provide
services.
TTC-35 will make it impossible for small communities to exist due to access
issues.
TTC-35 will wipe out entire towns and communities.
Counties will have to pay to build crossings over the corridor and residents
will have to pay to cross.
All land will be acquired under eminent domain at pennies on the dollar.
TxDOT has the authority to condemn property for private use and operate
commercial facilities associated with the Trans-Texas Corridor.
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. TTC-35 will open up the borders to Mexico and allow unlimited access for Mexican immigrants. Tolls on TTC will be set at whatever Cintra Zachry wants. Traffic is not bad and can be handled by upgrading existing facilities. The Cintra Zachry contract is a big secret and no details have been made available to the public. TTC will pave over cemeteries and destroy historic properties. Large tracts of land will be taken only to wait decades for the corridor to be built. 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 has the authority to pump groundwater and strip the minerals beneath the surface. |
"Myth Versus Reality" Press Release During the TTC-35 hearing held in the summer of 2006 the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) distributed a press release titled, "Myth Versus Reality." A more accurate title might have been, "Myth Versus PR Response." What’s missing in large measure is the Reality. Media outlets that received and published this press release should have some fact checking before presenting it to the public without qualification. Granted it is difficult to address every issue in black and white terms. However, TxDOT has a vested interest in making every pig’s ear of the TTC a silk purse. At CorridorWatch.org our goal is education and to call a pig’s ear a pig’s ear. We try our best to be objective and sometimes you might find a very nice pig’s ear, if you like that sort of thing.
CorridorWatch.org takes this opportunity to share the list of
eighteen ‘Myths’ provided by TxDOT (source or sources unknown),
the TxDOT Response, and add to that a touch of Reality provided
by CorridorWatch.org. The Myth and Response portions reprinted
below are verbatim from the TxDOT press release and appear in
the same order.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 1 TTC-35 will be 10 miles wide.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 2 TxDOT already knows the location of the project and will direct Cintra Zachry where to build it.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 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.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 4 TTC-35 will make it impossible for small communities to exist due to access issues.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 5 TTC-35 will wipe out entire towns and communities.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 6 Counties will have to pay to build crossings over the corridor and residents will have to pay to cross.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 7 All land will be acquired under eminent domain at pennies on the dollar.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 8 TxDOT has the authority to condemn property for private use and operate commercial facilities associated with the Trans-Texas Corridor.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 9 TxDOT will transfer its eminent domain authority to a private entity hired to develop the corridor.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 10 All land will be owned by the Spanish government.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 11 TTC-35 will open up the borders to Mexico and allow unlimited access for Mexican immigrants.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 12 Tolls on TTC will be set at whatever Cintra Zachry wants.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 13 Traffic is not bad and can be handled by upgrading existing facilities.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 14 The Cintra Zachry contract is a big secret and no details have been made available to the public.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 15 TTC will pave over cemeteries and destroy historic properties.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 16 Large tracts of land will be taken only to wait decades for the corridor to be built.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 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.
Mysterious TxDOT Myth Number 18 TxDOT has the authority to pump groundwater and strip the minerals beneath the surface.
|
||
| All 18 Myths on One Page | |||
This Page Last Updated: Thursday December 14, 2006