Tuesday, February 27, 2007

TTC - The next "Lexus Lanes"

A interesting article in the Waxahachie Daily Light compares the TTC to California's over-priced "Lexus Lanes".

The State Auditor Office released a report that concludes few will use the Trans-Texas Corridor due to high pricing. This and other studies say that by 2030, only about 24% of the traffic would be diverted from I-35 to the TTC on the congested areas between Dallas and San Antonio.

Corridor Watch spokesman David Stall is concerned about the TTC-35 projected tolls - and the impact on how that expense would affect people’s decisions to use the roadway.

“They’re going to make the tolls as much as people are willing to pay,” Stall said of any private entity that would take on any of the TransTexas Corridor’s planned 4,000 miles of toll roads.

“That’s exactly the opposite with what we have now (with state-run toll roads) that keep the toll as low as necessary,” he said, noting state-run toll roads’ motive is to keep traffic moving - not to make a profit.

“Private operators can raise the tolls as high as the market will bear,” Stall said, noting privately-run toll roads are familiar to people in California, where high tolls have led to the toll roads being nicknamed “Lexus lanes.”

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