January 3, 2005

By Gary Bushell
Attorney and Governement Consultant

On Dec. 16 the Texas Transportation Commission selected a private partner to begin developing the first components of the Trans Texas Corridor (TTC) system. TxDOT will be negotiating with CINTRA, a Spanish transportation and toll road developer, to build the North-South TTC corridor on a line roughly parallel to Interstate 35 from Oklahoma to a point east of San Antonio, then running directly south to the western edge of Corpus Christi and on to the Rio Grande Valley and Mexico.

This project is referred to by TxDOT as TTC-35. Plans disclosed so far indicate that CINTRA (in partnership with H.B. Zackry Construction) would develop $6 billion in new roadways. The first phase would be 316 miles of new four-lane divided tollway from near Lake Texoma to near Seguin, connecting to both ends of Texas 130, a toll road currently under construction east of Austin by the Lone Star Infrastructure LLC consortium.

When combined, the CINTRA-Texas 130 projects will create about 120 miles out of the 260 miles in the Fort Hood-to-Corpus Christi portion of the Gulf Coast Strategic Highway system.

This Commission action provides the Trans Texas Corridor system a huge momentum boost. The terms offered by the CINTRA-Zackry consortium were far more positive to the state than almost anyone would have expected. This will add momentum to the Gulf Coast Strategic Highway effort. The CINTRA consortium expects completion of the leg from the Fort Hood area to San Antonio by 2010. CINTRA proposes to build the tollway from Seguin south to the Rio Grande Valley about a decade later when more toll revenue is likely.

Chairman Ric Williamson asked the staff if the Commission decided it is in the state’s best interest to complete the North-South road from Seguin to the Port of Corpus Christi on the same time schedule as the Central Texas section, could they use some of the $1.2 billion in funds CINTRA will pay to TxDOT in concession fees to meet the more aggressive schedule. He was told that was a permissible use of those funds.

TxDOT staff anticipates publication in early 2005 of a “Request for Proposals” (RFP) from private groups interested in developing the I-69/TTC corridor from South Texas to Northeast Texas. The staff told our organization at a conference in College Station in March that our east/west corridor could follow I-69 if we made the economic and political case for it. They have also indicated that they would enlarge the study area for the east/west conceptual route to include our proposed route north of the Hill Country.

With the success of getting a private sector consortium to agree to build $6 billion in infrastructure and pay the state $1.2 billion for the opportunity to do so, TxDOT will be encouraged to move the other priority segments forward. The success that TxDOT has had on this TTC-35 leg also demonstrates the opportunity for other states to consider this concept.

The next step for the Gulf Coast Strategic Highway Coalition is to get each county and city along both our north/south and east/west routes to pass resolutions of support for the Trans Texas Corridor, generally, and our two routes in particular. Now that TxDOT is convinced the Trans Texas Corridor is financially viable they will be looking for political support.

I do not think it is unrealistic to set a goal of TxDOT issuing a RFP on our east/west route in 2006.

(TXDOT News Release)

Cintra will invest $7.2 billion for the Trans-Texas Corridor

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 16, 2004

AUSTIN —Taking an historic step, the Texas Transportation Commission today selected a proposal by Cintra — an international group of engineering, construction and financial firms — as the best value for the state in developing the Oklahoma-to-Mexico portion of the Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC-35).

Cintra proposes to invest $6 billion in a toll road between Dallas and San Antonio by 2010, give the state $1.2 billion for additional transportation improvements between Oklahoma and Mexico, and to extend the corridor into the Lower Rio Grande Valley to Mexico."

This is an historic change in the way major transportation assets are built and paid for in Texas," said Ric Williamson, chairman of the Texas Transportation Commission. "Private investment, not taxpayer dollars, will be where we look first for funding."

To address the state’s need for immediate congestion relief on Interstate 35, the first phase of Cintra’s proposal calls for developing $6 billion in new roadways roughly paralleling the interstate by 2010. This includes building 316 miles of new four-lane divided highway from Dallas to San Antonio. According to the proposal, pending environmental clearance and the public-involvement process, construction could begin immediately after right-of-way acquisition.

Cintra’s package also includes funding options for a route connecting southeast San Antonio to State Highway 130 and for relocating — to the east — the existing Union Pacific Railroad between San Antonio and Austin.

Future projects envisioned by Cintra include separate lanes for cars and trucks on SH 130, a relief route around the west side of Fort Worth, a TTC-35 route from San Antonio to the Rio Grande Valley, and rail between Dallas and San Antonio.

Cintra is one of three groups to submit detailed proposals on how to develop the Oklahoma to Mexico element of the Trans-Texas Corridor. TxDOT has been studying the proposals since August, and today the Texas Transportation Commission accepted a staff recommendation that the Cintra proposal provided the best long-term value to the state.

In return for building the new transportation corridor and giving it to the state — plus paying the state $1.2 billion to invest in the corridor — Cintra proposes to negotiate for a 50-year contract to maintain and operate the new highway as a toll road.

"The private sector is willing and able to invest in transportation improvements to reduce congestion, improve safety, provide economic development, and protect our quality of life," said Williamson. "There are many details to be worked out and separate environmental studies must be completed. Without a doubt, the private sector is knocking at our door with a nearly incredible opportunity for Texas."

Contract negotiations between TxDOT and Cintra will begin immediately. The complete proposals will be made available for public review once a contract has been signed and TxDOT obtains ownership of the ideas and innovations presented by all three private firms. Prior to that, release of the proposals is prohibited due to the proprietary information they contain.

The five-member transportation commission voted unanimously to select Cintra as the state’s first private-sector firm on the Trans-Texas Corridor.

"In Texas, we’re breaking new ground," Commissioner Robert Nichols said. "By far, this will be one of the largest private-sector investments in transportation in U.S. history."

Commissioner Hope Andrade pointed to the proposal’s economic impact. "This is an enormously important crossroad for Texas," she said. "This project will mean jobs and opportunities for the people of this state for generations to come."

Commissioner John W. Johnson sees the proposal as a major stepping-stone toward the development of I-69 as well. "It amounts to a blueprint for building I-69," he said.

"All of us on the commission appreciate the vision of Gov. Perry in proposing the Trans-Texas Corridor, which has now become a reality." Commissioner Ted Houghton said.

For more information contact TxDOT Public Information Office at (512) 463-8588.

(Corpus Christi Caller Times Story)
Contractor for Oklahoma-Mexico corridor picked