Honkin' Mad

Lawmakers not satisfied with plan to spend stimulus money on roads

Tarrant County was the big winner this week, when state transportation officials recommended spending $250 million in federal stimulus money on the long-awaited reconstruction of Grapevine freeways -- a $1 billion project overall called the DFW Connector.

Also, the Southwest Parkway toll road would get $143 million from another regionally controlled pot of stimulus money.

But hold on.

An influential lawmaker, state Rep. Jim Dunnam, A Waco-area Democrat, warned this afternoon (Thur., Feb. 26) that the Texas Department of Transportation's plan to cast a final vote on the stimulus funding next Thursday (March 5) may be premature. Dunnam is chairman of a House select committee tracking the federal economic stabilization funding.

Asked Thursday (Feb. 26) whether TxDot's planned vote was too soon, Dunnam replied: "It depends on whether they're going to use this time to give meaningful information to the legislators. I've not heard any members that appear content with the decision making."

Dunnam also disputes the assertion from TxDot officials that the stimulus projects must be approved quickly to avoid missing federal deadlines and being forced to send the money back to Washington.

"They have to obligate half of it in 120 days -- that's four months."

Dunnam's comments illustrate TxDot's continued credibility problem in the Lege, particularly in the House. A fair number of state reps just don't believe the agency itself can be trusted to spend $1.2 billion statewide in stimulus funding on roads.

TxDot supporters say it's mostly a perception thing, and that TxDot leadership worked very closely with metropolitan planning organizations to decide which projects to pick for stimulus funding. In Dallas-Fort Worth, the decision was reached after about four months of negotiations between TxDot and the North Central Texas Council of Governments.

Dunnam also characterized this week's decision by the Texas Transportation Commission to go ahead and spend about $500 million on road maintenance "unacceptable."

-- Gordon.

Stimulus money for roads

Tarrant County may get a big chunk of that federal money

Orange cone alert in Arlington

If you're a regular on Collins Street in Arlington, watch for this hairy detour beginning Saturday. 

Reduced speed ahead

Speed limits are dropping 5-10 mph on 15 segments of Fort Worth highways. Check out this map

Pic: Runningagainstcancer.org

9:53 a.m. Update: Have you gotten a ticket on one of these stretches? We're getting reports from some drivers that speed limits are already posted at the lower levels at a couple of locations. Problems? Concerns? Send an e-mail to gdickson@star-telegram.com

10:30 a.m. Update: Joe Cole of Weatherford called to say he's been making a weekly trip to Saginaw for years now, and the lower speed limits are already posted on I-30 west of Loop 820. The speed limit starts at 65 and decreases to 60 as you approach Loop 820. What's going on here ???

p.s. Joe says whatever the real speed limit is, about 1/3 of the drivers ignore it and go 80 mph or faster. He wonders why the police don't patrol it more often.

... Maybe the confusion over the speed limit is why!!!

Does this deserve a ticket?

Watch video of Duncanville Councilman Paul Ford getting a red light camera ticket.

Red light cameras ... Are some cities getting petty?

Some motorists have reported getting red light camera tickets for for less serious offenses, such as failure to stop before a white line.

*Burleson Mayor Ken Shetter's response to this article is in the comments below.

New poll shows Dallas-Fort Worth support for commuter rail

A whopping 85 percent of Dallas-Fort Worth residents favor the creation of a region-wide passenger rail system, according to the results of a public opinion poll released a few minutes ago by the powerful Austin lobbying firm HillCo Partners. Read the results for yourself.
The firm has been hired by Fort Worth, Arlington and the Tarrant Regional Transportation Coalition to lead the lobbying effort for the Texas Local Option Transportation Act. If the state Legislature passes the bill, voters in Dallas-Fort Worth counties would be asked to approve a menu of taxes and fees to pay for commuter rail and road projects.
What types of taxes and fees are people willing to pay for public transportation? According to the poll, driver's license fees and vehicle registration fees are the most popular options.
-- Gordon.

The most dangerous intersection in the world?

Quite possibly:

What causes traffic jams

Researchers have figgered out how to recreate a traffic jam in a lab enviro. Check out the "shockwave" of traffic that seems to move backward through the row of cars.

Bill would allow new taxes and fees for transportation

D/FW AIRPORT — Voters in counties across the Dallas-Fort Worth region could be asked to approve new taxes and fees for roads and commuter rail as soon as spring 2011, according to supporters of a sweeping transportation bill filed Monday.
Dozens of legislators, mayors and other supporters of the so-called Texas Local-Option Transportation Act gathered Monday at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport. One by one, they expressed optimism that the measure would pass during the current legislative session, triggering what likely would be multi-year process of identifying transportation needs in each county and taking the issues to voters.
The bill would allow counties to hold elections and ask voters raise new monies for development of commuter rail lines or to supplement funding for road projects. It’s being pitched as a remedy for North Texas’ chronically under funded gridlock and air pollution problems. “If we don’t have a forward-thinking transportation system, we won’t have economic development in this region 25 years from now,” said state Sen. John Carona, R-Dallas, who filed the Senate version of the bill. The house version is being filed by state Rep. Vicki Truitt, R-Keller.
The bill would allow Tarrant County and other neighboring counties to hold local option elections, asking voters to raise a menu of taxes and fees, within these limits:

• Higher motor fuels taxes, up to 10 cents per gallon, indexed to increase gradually with a cost of living measure known as the producer price index.
• An additional fee, known as a “mobility improvement fee” tacked onto car owners’ annual vehicle registration fee, up to $60 a year.
• Parking fees of up to $1 per hour.
• An additional vehicle emissions fee of up to $15 a year.
• Driver’s license fee, up to double the renewal amount — currently $24 for a basic noncommercial license.
• A new resident impact fee up to $250, paid by car owners registering their vehicles in Texas for the first time.    

Using those funding parameters, each county could customize its own transportation plan to meet road and rail needs. Elections could be called in one of three ways:

1. By vote of a county commission
2. By a resolution of cities with a combined population of at least 60 percent of a county.
3. By a petition signed by at least 10 percent of that county’s voters in the most recent gubernatorial election.

-- Gordon