Daily News Briefs, October 10, 2016

Confusion Reigns Between MDX and Governor Scott on Resumption of Tolls After Hurricane

Miami Herald reports, “In an interview, Mario Diaz, spokesman for the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority, described a confusing back-and-forth between state transportation officials and the local agency” over when the agency should resume charging tolls in the wake of Hurricane Matthew. According to Diaz, FDOT contacted MDX Director Javier Rodriguez Friday morning, October 7, and said he should email a request to lift the toll suspension that had been ordered to facilitate metro Miami evacuation. “When MDX sent the requested email, Diaz said, ‘we were told no. We never really wanted to make that initial request,’ he said. ‘But we were asked to make it so they could consider it.’”

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Plenary Group and Colorado State Police Will Step-Up US 36 Toll Enforcement

Daily Camera (Boulder) reports that Simon Stachnik, project manager for Plenary Group, “is working on a new contract, which will likely be finalized in 2017, that would pay for full-time enforcement of toll and other violations on U.S. 36 by Colorado State Patrol troopers.” The report adds, “As the contract stands now, . . . troopers can sign up to work over-time shifts patrolling U.S. 36, with an emphasis on toll violations, and Plenary Group will pay them.” Local police agencies that also patrol the highway do not focus on toll enforcement.

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Rhode Island Trucking Association to "Inject Cash" to Defeat Lawmakers Who Backed Truck Toll Plan

WPRI News reports, “The Rhode Island Trucking Association will inject cash into the political cycle to combat the re-election bids of several lawmakers who voted for tolls,” according to the group’s president, Chris Maxwell. Maxwell tells the station four to six politicians who supported the RhodeWorks truck toll legislation will be targeted, but “he did not offer specifics.”

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NTTA's Severance Pay Draws Newspaper Scrutiny

The Dallas Morning News “Watchdog” columnist looks at the North Texas Tollway Authority’s severance pay practices, reporting, “Since 2011, the NTTA has paid almost $800,000 in severance payments to 26 employees.” The newspaper adds, “This comes up because The Watchdog has learned how much NTTA has paid departing employees . . . since 2011. It wasn’t hard. I filed an open records request, and NTTA quickly complied.”

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Illinois DOT Helps Indiana Bring Back the Illiana Project

Daily Southtown (via Chicago Tribune) reports, “The Illinois Department of Transportation is teaming up with Indiana to get the Illiana toll road back on track, according to a . . . . statement filed in US District Court Oct. 6 by John Fortmann, an IDOT engineer,” who said IDOT “is working cooperatively” with Indiana to address the issues underlying the court’s 2015 ruling that the proposed project’s environmental impact analysis was flawed. [Link added.] An IDOT spokesperson tells the newspaper the project remains suspended as far as Illinois is concerned, but an environmental advocate claims the department’s actions “defy that.”

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St. Tammany Parish Council Approves Lake Pontchartrain Causeway Bond Issue

The New Orleans Advocate reports, “The St. Tammany Parish Council approved a Lake Pontchartrain Causeway bond issue Thursday night [October 6], probably setting the stage for a controversial toll hike that has drawn heated opposition from the group Concerned Citizens of St. Tammany and the parish Republican Party’s Executive Committee.”

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Peace Bridge Tolls Increasing, E-ZPass Discount Going Away on Jan. 1, 2018

The Buffalo News reports, “Come Jan. 1, 2018, it will cost 75 cents more to cross the Peace Bridge into Canada. And to make your New Year’s celebration that much merrier, you will lose your 10 percent E-ZPass discount, too. The Peace Bridge Authority unanimously authorized the increase [on October 7], emphasizing that the new $3.75 automobile toll remains the lowest on the northern border and will match the price of Niagara County crossings.” The article adds, “The authority decided to end its 10 percent discount for use of E-ZPass . . . because of its cost and failure to grow in use as originally projected.”

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CTRMA Launches Education Campaign on Use of MoPac Express Lanes

KXAN News reports, “Recently, the MoPac Improvement Project has been airing advertisements that walk drivers through how the new lanes will work. The ad also explains that the express lanes are not meant for everyday use, rather they are meant for occasions when you can’t afford to be late.” Click here to watch a MoPac information video.

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A Look at How Indiana's Next Governor May Drive P3 Opportunities

Indianapolis Business Journal reports, “Indiana’s next governor — whose road-funding agenda will likely shape discussions at next year’s budget session of the Indiana General Assembly — will have a major role in crafting future deals to fund projects and maintain the state’s infrastructure.” The article looks at the major candidates’ respective views on P3 development.

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Bridgegate: The "B" Witness List Includes Traffic Engineers

NJ.com reports, “After the fireworks of David Wildstein, who testified for eight days about an alleged scheme of political retribution by allies of Gov. Chris Christie, prosecutors in the Bridgegate scandal have gone to their ‘B’ list of witnesses to begin filling in the details.” That list included a “a consultant doing an unrelated traffic study for planned overpass reconstruction work near the George Washington Bridge.” The consultant testified that his firm incurred additional costs of about $3,500.00, which it billed to the port authority, as result of the lane closures incident.

NJ.com also posts a slide show wrap-up that includes a series of the e-mail exchanges and other evidence.

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THEA Hosts Virtual Town Hall on Selmon Extension Project

Tampa Bay Times staffs a Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority virtual town hall meeting on the Selmon Extension, “which will connect the Lee Roy Selmon Crosstown Expressway with the Gandy Bridge.” The newspaper reports, “Participants using email questioned the authority’s estimate that 40 percent of the motorists who now use Gandy during rush hour are just passing through to other locations and will use the toll road, easing congestion on Gandy. Others appeared to doubt the authority’s assurances that the elevated toll road would not extend over the sidewalks on each side of Gandy.”

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Jane Addams Smart Tollway Project Continues

WLS News provides a brief update on the installation of gantries as part of the Jane Addams “Smart Tollway” project. The gantries “will show drivers which lanes are blocked ahead with a red ‘X’ in the box above the lane, officials said. A large overhead sign will alert drivers to accidents or other incidents ahead of them,” according to the report.

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Truck Squeezing Through Toll Plaza Snarls Golden Gate Bridge Traffic

KGO News reports that all lanes on southbound Highway 101 reopened on Friday, October 7 “after a truck attempted to go through a narrow lane, got stuck and then forced its way through.”

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Moody's on MTA Bridge and Tunnel Bonds

Moody’s Investor Services “has assigned a Aa3 to the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority’s (TBTA) General Revenue Variable Rate Refunding Bonds, Subseries 2005B-4a ($27.0 million), Subseries 2005B-4b ($37.5 million), and Subseries 2005B-4e ($45.2 million). Moody’s has also affirmed the Aa3 rating on the TBTA’s parity outstanding general revenue bonds totaling approximately $7.12 billion and the A1 rating on the subordinate lien general revenue bonds totaling $1.66 billion. We have also affirmed the VMIG1 ratings on the Series 2005B-4a bonds. The outlook on the long term ratings is stable.”

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