Thanks, Editor!

[pineda]

saw it here on HAIF!

[TheNiche]

saw it here on HAIF!

So did I...and I pointed it out in a different thread.

As much as I despise the TTC concept, I also don't like the rhetorical message brought up in that ad.

FOREIGN INVESTMENT IS A GOOD THING!

[pineda]

I just hope Perry sees the light before it's too late, but I don't see it happening. I think he's too deep now to ever get out. What started out years ago as an interesting conceptual idea turned quickly into a nightmare for him, which every candidate out there is using against him now.

[TJones]

Pineda, where's the form letter to print for those that STRONGLY AGREE ?

Those tolls pay for NEW roads, and to keep those nice concrete ones you have already looking nice also. I do disagree with privatising them, because the money will never get back to the roads for repair, but if the Govt. keeps the roads, then we have recourse, when the roads are unacceptable. I know you strongly oppose progress in your area, and that The Woodlands should just be one giant greenspace forever, but I have never seen you delicate flower one iota about all the MALL space your community has built up there.

[pineda]

TJ-

It's not my site. I just noticed it today on HAIF. You'll have to check it out yourself for those answers.

And, as for your comment " but I have never seen you delicate flower one iota about all the MALL space your community has built up there", why would I?

I don't live in The Woodlands, I live in Spring. We don't have a lot of "MALL space" in Spring, and "my community", what does that mean? My neighborhood? Last time I checked, no one was threatening to build "a MALL" less than 1000' away from my kids schools and have traffic coming and going to it 24/7 from Mexico to Canada, if that's what you're getting at.

You also wrote:

I do disagree with privatising them, because the money will never get back to the roads for repair, but if the Govt. keeps the roads, then we have recourse, when the roads are unacceptable.

This is actually the one thing Corridor Watch and Toll Party keeps emphasizing. If we lose control of the roads to Cintra, we are in trouble, and I think you just agreed with that statement.

[TheNiche]

So did I...and I pointed it out in a different thread.

As much as I despise the TTC concept, I also don't like the rhetorical message brought up in that ad.

FOREIGN INVESTMENT IS A GOOD THING!

To clarify my position, since this thread seems to be taking a turn toward matters surrounding the Grand Parkway, I like the GP. And I can live with foreign investors building toll roads up the I-35 and future I-69 corridors (assuming that the routes make sense, which the I-35 one doesn't IMO).

I also know that the State could very easily insert a clause in Cintra's contract that requires them to be responsible for future maintenance to the particular standards that we require. That's not really so much of an issue, if properly executed by the dealmakers.

I just really and truely dislike the price tag on most of these routes considering their probable traffic volumes. Its all about cost and benefit. There's way too much of one in most cases, and far too little of the other.

[pineda]

I also know that the State could very easily insert a clause in Cintra's contract that requires them to be responsible for future maintenance to the particular standards that we require. That's not really so much of an issue, if properly executed by the dealmakers.

[ssullivan]

While I disagree with the whole TTC project and tolling every road in the state, privatizing some of the roads doesn't worry me as much. Having done extensive travel on the private autoroutes in France and autopistas in Spain, I don't see ongoing maintenance as an issue. Many of those roads are far better maintained than our interstates here. Remember, Cintra has a vested interest in keeping their roads in great condition, because if they don't, they risk losing revenue as drivers chose the free interstate routes over the private toll roads. I would expect that Cintra's roads would be just as good, if not better, than the free ones maintained by TxDOT.

[TheNiche]

While I disagree with the whole TTC project and tolling every road in the state, privatizing some of the roads doesn't worry me as much. Having done extensive travel on the private autoroutes in France and autopistas in Spain, I don't see ongoing maintenance as an issue. Many of those roads are far better maintained than our interstates here. Remember, Cintra has a vested interest in keeping their roads in great condition, because if they don't, they risk losing revenue as drivers chose the free interstate routes over the private toll roads. I would expect that Cintra's roads would be just as good, if not better, than the free ones maintained by TxDOT.

Come to think of it, one of the selling points of having the I-35 corridor toll road was that speed limits could be increased above what was allowed on public roads. I'm sure that if it has a lick of sense, Cintra will understand that poor roads will lead to countless lawsuits over crashed vehicles and injured/dead people, and that if the problem gets out of hand, the State could always revoke the toll road's right to have higher speed limits than on public roads. One way or another, that would definitely cost them money.