Honkin' Mad

Update: Back in Fort Worth. Took Amtrak from Austin, and it was on time the whole way ...

2:18 p.m. The Texas Eagle (northbound train 22) pulled into Fort Worth exactly on schedule, at 1:58 p.m. At the moment, I'm sitting in the Amtrak lobby of the Intermodal Transportation Center, filing a story and waiting for a T bus to take me to my neighborhood. I enjoyed the journey and hope you did, too. That's it for now ... -- G.

I'm on the Amtrak Texas Eagle, heading back to Fort Worth after spending the past day and a half in Austin. This morning's train left Austin on time at 9:31 a.m. (A big 'Thank you' to the nice woman who agreed to interrupt her studying and take this picture of me with my cellphone ;-))

The Eagle pulled into Temple at 11:23 a.m., and is scheduled to depart on time at 11:25 a.m.

I'm updating as I can. Wireless isn't available on the train, and the Verizon air card for my laptop works most of the time, although it likely will be spotty as the train heads north until we get to Cleburne (at about 1 p.m., if the journey stays on time).

Today's trip is getting off to a nice start. It was a different story on Wednesday, when the train left Fort Worth at 2:42 p.m., 32 minutes late -- and it took nearly EIGHT hours to get to Austin. The Eagle should have arrived in Austin at 6:30 p.m. but arrived at 10:08 instead. More than two hours of the delay was attributed to a BNSF freight train that, according to the Amtrak staff, had "come apart" on the tracks ahead. The BNSF crew apparently had some trouble putting it back together, reconnecting brakes, etc. Unlike the trains in Europe and Asia, Amtrak runs on freight lines operated by private-sector freight companies, and freight congestion is the most common reason that Amtrak trains are delayed.

I do have to say, though, that if Amtrak could lick the reliability problem (and keep the Fort Worth to Austin journey to roughly four hours), it would be a huge hit with people making short to medium-distance trips in Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas. The fare is only $26 each way. The food is terrific. (A couple of riders described it to me as "way better than airline food.") Also, Austin and Fort Worth are particularly convenient stops because Amtrak riders disembark in downtown areas with affordable hotels. I'm told Oklahoma City is that way, too, although I haven't yet taken the Amtrak Heartland Flyer there (hope to do that trip soon). In Austin, every place I needed to be this week was within walking distance or a short taxi ride.

@gdickson

Here are a few snapshots I took on the train ride to Austin Wednesday afternoon, including a woman enjoying the view of southwest Fort Worth, an old locomotive on a sidetrack in Temple and sunset from the lounge car while passing through Little River-Academy:

 

Texas 121/183 merge in Bedford, Tx closing this weekend for bridge work on N. Tarrant Express

The Texas 121/183 merge in Bedford will close in phases Friday night and Saturday morning, and motorists are urged to expect delays and seek other routes. The closure is part of the ongoing work on the $2.1 billion North Tarrant Express project. In this phase, the new Murphy Drive bridge is being built.

The closure begins at 9 p.m. Friday and continues through 10 a.m. Saturday. Traffic will be rerouted along frontage roads and local streets. "To ensure the safety of drivers, we cannot allow vehicles to travel under the bridge as we set beams in place ...," said Bluebonnet Contractors spokeswoman Lara Kohl.

If necessary, a similar closure could also occur between Saturday night and Sunday morning, but as of Thursday night that potential closure wasn't officially announced.

@gdickson

 

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Updated: New Texas Dept. of Transportation chief Phil Wilson, from Luminant energy, is politically wired but not an engineer

AUSTIN -- For the first time in modern history, the Texas Department of Transportation is not hiring an executive director from within. The department’s governing commission on Thursday tapped Phil Wilson, who currently serves as senior vice president of public affairs for Luminant, an energy company formerly known as TXU Corp. He will be paid $292,500 annually in his new state job.

The transportation department, which has been criticized for being too insular in selecting its leadership, went outside the family and made what appears to be a political appointment. Wilson also is a former Texas Secretary of State with close political ties to current and former elected leaders, including Texas Gov. Rick Perry. Wilson was an aide to former U.S. Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, for 10 years. He also served as communications director and deputy chief of staff for Perry, and chaired the Governor’s Competitiveness Council.

Having someone from the outside who’s not an engineer, we’ll have a new set of eyes,” said Bill Meadows of Fort Worth, a Texas Transportation Commission member. “He’s got significant public sector management experience and a background in government as well.”

Wilson since 2008 has run the public and government affairs for Luminant, an energy generation company. He takes the helm of a transportation department that for the past six years has been criticized for financial mismanagement, overly-aggressive pursuit of toll roads and willingness to turn over public roads to private developers.

Wilson will be the first executive director without an engineering background. Instead, the Brownwood native holds a bachelor’s degree from Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene and a master’s degree in business administration from Southern Methodist University. While serving as secretary of state, Wilson led a Border Colonia Access Program and a Texas-Mexico Border Affairs Initiative -- both of which included transportation-related work. As secretary of state, he was also Texas’ chief elections officer. As chair of the competitiveness council, Wilson recommended the use of public-private partnerships for transportation, expansion of inland ports, repair of existing infrastructure and relocation of rail outside populated areas.

“I am honored to be selected as the next executive director of TxDot,” Wilson said in a statement “This is an agency with a rich history in successfully building for our future with dedicated employees. I look forward to working with the agency, commission, Legislature and local communities on the most efficient and effective ways to build infrastructure for Texas.”

The hiring comes a month after the retirement of former executive director Amadeo Saenz, Jr., who endured criticism for pursuit of controversial toll projects such as the Trans Texas Corridor.

The $292,500 salary is the most the transportation department can pay him under state law, although the transportation commission may seek permission from the Legislative Budget Board to pay him more, commission chairwoman Deirdre Delisi of Austin said. Luminant is a subsidiary of Energy Future Holdings Corp., formerly TXU Corp., and is the largest buyer of wind-generated electricity in Texas.

How to get to the State Fair of Texas without losing your mind

It's a lot easier to digest all that fried food at the State Fair of Texas if you're not all stressed out by that Dallas traffic. Here are some tips to cope with it.

Is Texas ready for 85 mph speed limits? Zoom!

What do you think about the prospect of 85 mph speed limits in Texas? Well, get ready for it.

I'm in Austin this morning, covering the monthly meeting of the Texas Transportation Commission, and a proposal to raise speed limits in some rural areas (none in Dallas-Fort Worth) is on the agenda. I'm guessing the five commissioners will want to speak about the importance of studying the safety issues surrounding the proposed 85 mph speeds. On parts of Interstates 10 and 20 in far west Texas, the maximum speed limit is already 80 mph, so 5 extra miles per hour doesn't seem like much of a leap. But also keep in mind that the state recently did away with separate speed limits for trucks. So, in many of these corridors trucks may no longer be restricted to 65 mph while smaller vehicles are allowed to go faster. Whether it's trucks or economy cars or even Ferraris, how fast is too fast?

@gdickson

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington has the fifth worst congestion in the U.S., behind LA, NY, Chi and DC.

North Texas has the fifth worst traffic congestion in the United States, in terms of fuel wasted and time lost by commuters. That ranking is unchanged from last year, according to the 2011 Urban Mobility Report that is scheduled to be released Tuesday by the Texas Transportation Institute.

The institute at Texas A&M University periodically ranks congestion in 439 U.S. urban areas. The nation's worsening traffic problems have been offset somewhat by the poor economy. But not enough is being done to upgrade roads and bridges, to properly handle traffic when the economy improves, researchers at the institute concluded.

"If you invest in roads and transit, you get better service and access to more jobs," said Tim Lomax, one of the study authors.

Also, gridlock is no longer a problem reserved for the typical "rush hour" periods -- which is a misnomer anyway in Dallas-Fort Worth, where peak congestion now lasts five hours a day. But today, a full 40 percent of traffic congestion now occurs outside the traditional rush hour times, during the midday and nighttime hours.

Metro areas that wasted the most fuel in traffic, 2010:

City, million gallons

1. Los Angeles, 278

2. New York, 190

3. Chicago, 184

4. Washington, 95

5. Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, 81

@gdickson

Photo: Woman's Day

 

Former North Texas Tollway Authority chair Victor Vandergriff may run for state Senate

Just five days after stepping down as North Texas Tollway Authority board chair, Arlington businessman Victor Vandergriff appears to be ready to run for the state Senate, according to the Star-Telegram's Aman Batheja. He hasn't officially declared, but he already has an endorsement from the incumbent, state Sen. Chris Harris. Vandergriff remains chairman of the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles.

Southeastern Conference not only nabs Texas A&M, but SEC school logos are now a popular feature on Texas license plates

Can you believe that a Texas motorist can now buy a license plate featuring the logos of Ole Miss, Kentucky and other Southeastern Conference schools?

On Sunday, Texas A&M's long-awaited departure from the Big 12 to the SEC athletic conference became official. Today, the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles unveiled 18 new license plate designs -- including several from the SEC.

Fans of Ole Miss, Kentucky and schools from across the U.S. can now drive around Texas sporting their colors.

"We have a large representation from the SEC and we are working on more," said Kim Miller Drummond, spokeswoman for My Plates Inc., the vendor that handles the state's specialty plate program.

Ole Miss supporters nabbed more than 150 plates on the first day of sales, smashing the previous record.

Big 12 fans have had a rough month or two, losing A&M and also seeing their conference pushed to the verge of break-up. But take heart -- the most popular logo of an out-of-state college sold in Texas still belongs to the ... (drum roll) ... Oklahoma Sooners.  

To date, My Plates has sold more than 63,000 plates, generating $5.8 million for state coffers. Vehicle owners who buy specialty plates pay higher annual fees than those who go with the standard-issue license plate.

@gdickson

Former Fort Worth Mayor Barr assumes chair of North Texas Tollway Authority, brushes off concerns about conflicts

Kenneth Barr, who replaces Victor Vandergriff of Arlington as chairman of the North Texas Tollway Authority board, has urged the board not to change contractors too quickly. Vandergriff tried to bring in new blood for engineering, legal and other services, but lost support from other board members.

Parking becomes a problem in downtown Arlington -- and city officials are happy about it (sort of)

With Mellow Mushroom, Babe's Chicken Dinner House and other destination eateries coming to downtown Arlington, city officials are in a sense thrilled that they finally have a parking problem in the area. But, they recognize they have to do something about it.