Tag Archives: NCTCOG

Comments from Terri Hall / Texans Uniting for Reform and Freedom

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About the RTC/NCTCOG plans and whether or not saying no to the toll road effects other planned improvements…

Short answer is ‘No.’

For those who may not know me or our work at TURF. We’ve been fighting toll roads all over Texas for a decade, starting with the Trans Texas Corridor. We’ve studied statutes, RTC plans, Transportation Commission Minute Orders, toll contracts, testified in the legislature for 4 sessions and worked to kill and pass hundreds of bills. You name it, we’ve studied it. I’ve debated think tanks nationally on this subject and the press uses me as a resource to explain to them the details of these plans/contracts. I’ve been called an expert by many.

Here’s why saying ‘no’ to the NE Gateway toll road won’t effect other improvements:

This confusion and concern by elected officials is fomented by bureaucrats like Michael Morris & TxDOT who manipulate our elected officials with threats. I’ve witnessed him and TxDOT do this for the last 10 years. Right now in San Antonio, TxDOT and our local transit board are threatening to yank funds from our highway if my senator keeps pushing for non-toll lanes. It’s called blackmail, folks. They do it quite openly. It’s why TxDOT and the RTC have so much power. They manipulate our politicians using fear and ignorance (since few of them know the rules, where the pots of money are, etc.). They know how desperate everyone is for road improvements, and everyone has to work with TxDOT at some point to get it done. They fear if they challenge TxDOT, they’ll face retribution (which they do try to do – but the law protects us against these intimidation tactics).

I could bury you with examples of what they do, but I want you to pass along to ANY of your elected officials this message: we got the law changed to ensure road funds DO NOT get yanked if a region decides against toll roads. Chairman Joe Pickett helped us do it between 2009-2011 for this very reason. He sat on his local MPO board (it’s the equivalent of your RTC) and got tired of TxDOT bullying everyone into toll roads by threatening to yank their funding for other projects.

The New TxDOT rule change (which is administrative law) took effect Jan 1, 2011 and can be found in this section:
Limits on the commission’s ability to allocate funds based on a region’s participation in toll projects – §16.156 (Texas Administrative Code Chapter 16, Subchapter D can be found here:
http://info.sos.state.tx.us/pls/pub/readtac$ext.ViewTAC?tac_view=5&ti=43&pt=1&ch=16&sch=D&rl=Y

(a) Toll project conditions. Neither the commission nor the department may require that a toll project be included in a region’s transportation plan or program as a condition for the allocation of funds for the construction of projects in the region.

(b) Limitations on allocation decrease. Neither the commission nor the department may:

(1) revise a formula as provided in the unified transportation program under §16.105 of this chapter (relating to Unified Transportation Program (UTP)), or a successor program, in a manner that results in a decrease of an allocation to a district or metropolitan planning organization (MPO) because of:

(A) the failure of a region to include toll projects in a region’s transportation plan or program;

(2) take any other action that would reduce funding allocated to a district or MPO without the prior consent of the MPO because of:

(A) the failure of a region to include toll projects in a region’s transportation plan or program;

Source Note: The provisions of this §16.156 adopted to be effective January 1, 2011, 35 TexReg 8388

Bottom line is this: DO NOT back down, keep pushing. The fact that they’re already being threatened means you’re being effective and very soon will prevail in stopping this unwanted toll road by keeping it out of the RTC plan. It is absolutely true that the road cannot move forward unless it’s in an RTC/MPO plan. The one elected official who said they may word it to be all squishy and leave open the possibility of the road (being added) in the future, but don’t let that happen. If the need arises later, (they’ll) work to get it in the plan at a later date. Because as long as it’s in the RTC’s plan, it will happen, trust me. Plus, y’all need to know, since Perry is on his way out and we’ll have a new Governor soon (who’s campaigning on not increasing toll roads) and two new transportation commissioners come February, help is on the way. Do not allow these threats to make your elected officials get wobbly on us.

– Terri
____________
Terri Hall
Texans Uniting for Reform and Freedom
http://www.texasturf.org

Area News articles on the NCTCOG proposed tollroad

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There were 5 total NCTCOG public feedback meetings held over the last 13 months. There was not a single one that had any public support for any type of tollroad in the Blacklands Corridor. I challange everyone to look up the public records of all 5 meetings and read the feedback spoken and written in by letters or email.
These articles below aren’t cherry picked to support a point of view, they reflect what the people want. We all expect the NCTCOG and our elected representatives to support the people and not force another tollroad on the citizens of Texas. That’s what representatives do, they find a solution from the people, for the people, not their own echo chamber.

“About 1,300 people attended a Sept. 22 public meeting in Rockwall hosted by the North Central Texas Council of Governments Transportation Division. Almost all of those in attendance expressed opposition to a proposed toll road connecting Greenville with far northeast Dallas County.”
http://ketr.org/post/meeting-attendees-reject-northeast-gateway-toll-road

“It seems likely, though, that the NCTCOG has found both a need for the tollway and has agreed to let the Texas Turnpike Corp. be the one to build it. At a joint NCTCOG/Texas Turnpike meeting Monday, Morris and other agency staffers announced that they had finished their long-awaited study into the toll proposal, which they lumped in with a general study about the entire area they identified as the Blacklands Corridor. They presented their results in a packet of PowerPoint slides and said that Monday’s meeting would be the final government meeting on the topic.”
http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/unfairpark/2014/09/texas_turnpike_blackland_toll.php

“The survey of more than 5,000 Texans was conducted by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute in May to study how Texans get around and their views on transportation funding. Building more toll roads was, by far, the least supported strategy,” the report states. “The lack of support held true in both metropolitan areas and rural areas, as well as areas with and without toll roads.”
http://www.texastribune.org/2014/09/25/poll-few-texans-use-public-transportation-main-mod/

RTC Applies the Brakes

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Finally someone recognizes that this project has been on the fast track with VERY little public support. The RTC has basically told TTC/Public Werks and Hunt County that they need to slow down and follow procedure. RTC indicates that this project has NOT done due diligence in informing the public and determining if this project is really needed. The link below is to a video of the RTC meeting on March 14, 2013. I am including a list of the relevant segments so you do not have to watch the entire video, unless you are inclined to do so. After clicking the link below, click on Item #10 on the right hand side of the page. Then you can skip to the following segments.

http://nctcog.swagit.com/play/03142013-526

minutes 2:00-3:00
minutes 4:30-5:00
minutes 7:50-18:36 (This is the discussion segment. Judge Horn is in the red shirt, Michael Morris is the gentleman speaking on behalf of COG, and Duncan Webb (sitting close to Judge Horn) is a commissioner from Collin County. Webb is in favor of the move by COG to study this further. Collin Co. is not on board with the toll road.)

NCTCOG Meeting

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The NCTCOG Regional Transportation Council (RTC) meets again on Thursday, January 10, 2013 at 1:00pm. The location of this meeting is:

TRANSPORTATION COUNCIL ROOM (1ST FLOOR)
NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS
616 Six Flags Dr.
Arlington, TX 76011

We have been told the toll road project will be discussed. The agenda for the meeting is not yet posted on the NCTCOG website. I am not sure how open these meetings are. You may want to call ahead. We have been told both that they are open to the public and that they are not. Someone will need to show up in order to know for sure. At the very least I think people may be able to attend but probably not speak unless added to an agenda somehow. Here is a link to the RTC page on NCTCOG’s website. I think an agenda will be posted prior to the meeting.

http://www.nctcog.org/trans/committees/rtc/index.asp

Public Werks, Inc. Presentation

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Video — Click Here.

This is from the December 11, 2012 Wylie City Council meeting. The video presentation is very informative. To see the presentation in the video, look just under the video window and select the last item in the list “Work Session Item 2.” The presentation is long and you’ll probably have to turn your volume all the way up, but worth a listen. At about 36 minutes into the video a council member addresses the 100 feet issue, indicating that is not near enough width to build this highway.

Here is an excerpt from the full agenda. Click on the “Full Agenda” tab and scroll down toward the bottom for the WORKSESSION section.

WORKSESSION

  • Presentation by John Crew, Public Werks, Inc. and discussion regarding a Letter of Support for a proposed Toll Road Project between Greenville Texas and the President George Bush Turnpike. (M. Manson, City Manager)

Executive Summary
The Texas Turnpike Corporation (TTC) is a private toll road corporation that has legislative authority to build and operate toll roads in the State of Texas. Per the TTC representatives, the project is intended to alleviate traffic congestion in this area, specifically that of I-30 in Dallas and Rockwall counties. The proposed Phase 1 of the project would be built between Lavon and Greenville through a ground lease from the Northeast Texas Rural Rail Transportation District (NETEX). NETEX owns 88 miles of abandoned railroad right-of-way between Wylie and Mount Pleasant, which is commonly known as the Cotton Belt. As proposed, the project would ultimately connect with the President George Bush Turnpike.

About the toll road

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A private company, Texas Turnpike Corporation/Public Werks Inc., is planning to build a toll road connecting Greenville, TX in Hunt County to Lavon, TX in Collin County.  This project plans to use the Northeast Texas Rural Rail Transportation District’s (NETEX) right-of-way property for the location of the road.  The railroad’s property is only about 100 feet wide, which is not wide enough to support the 4-lane divided highway AND leave room for NETEX’s rail restoration future plans.  That means private property will be confiscated in order to build the road.

If you own property along the railroad’s right-of-way, you can expect to have anywhere from 100-300 feet (maybe more) of your property taken from you “for the greater good.”  You will not be told about this in a timely manner. It is already in the works.

It is up to private property owners to take a stand and protect YOUR property.