Witnessing the Meltdown

2/2/05 - Update. I sent a letter to the editor on 1/4/05 following another toll article. It hasn't been printed nor has Mr. Wear ever replied to me or reported why the additional costs for some of these roads. --brendan

A letter I wrote to Ben Wear re: cost per mile for toll roads. He replied that these were good points and he'd look into them. I'll post an update if I get one.

Hello,

I had some questions regarding the cost / mile of these toll roads using the sidebar to your Tuesday article (Toll-road plan gets the green light):

* Texas 71: From a few hundred yards east of Interstate 35 to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. The first 2.1 miles of this 3.6-mile project, from I-35 to west of Riverside Drive, is under construction using tax dollars. Construction on all segments would begin by 2005. Total new costs: $112 million.

This works out to 31.1M / mile in additional costs.

* U.S. 183 (Ed Bluestein Boulevard): From I-35 (including a new direct ramp from I-35 to U.S. 183) to the interchange with Texas 71. The 2.3-mile segment from I-35 to Springdale Road is under construction. Construction on all portions of this 12.6-mile project would begin by 2006. Total new costs: $479 million.

This is an additional 38.4M / mile.

* U.S. 290 West: From Williamson Creek, where the freeway currently ends, west to near RM 1826. Construction on this 2.7-mile segment will begin this year. Cost: $185 million.

This works out to 68.5M / mile.

* U.S. 290 East: From U.S. 183 east for 5.7 miles to Texas 130, a turnpike around Austin’s east side under construction. Officials estimate construction will begin in 2007. Cost: $400 million.

This work out to 70.1M / mile.

You wrote an article in the Spring which examined in depth the cost of road building which documented that for recent area project the cost per mile is about 20-30M. Along come the toll roads with costs of 50M+ / mile (I'm assuming the TX71 and US183 projects had already budgeted 20-30M / mile so the additional 31.1M and 38.4M respectively would work out to a minimum of 51.1M / 58.4M per mile respectively).

(I left out the Loop 360 and Tx45SW as they are inline with the 20-30M / mile rule of thumb).

Am I missing something or are toll roads going to be a lot more expensive than if the state built using limited tax dollars?

Thanks,
Brendan




	Witnessing the Meltdown Home Get Email Updates What I Do for a Living Email Me Admin Password Remember Me 13495 Curiosities served Share on Facebook				2004-07-14 9:50 AM Letter re: cost / mile for CTexas toll roads Previous Entry :: Next Entry Read/Post Comments (0) 2/2/05 - Update. I sent a letter to the editor on 1/4/05 following another toll article. It hasn't been printed nor has Mr. Wear ever replied to me or reported why the additional costs for some of these roads. --brendan A letter I wrote to Ben Wear re: cost per mile for toll roads. He replied that these were good points and he'd look into them. I'll post an update if I get one. Hello, I had some questions regarding the cost / mile of these toll roads using the sidebar to your Tuesday article (Toll-road plan gets the green light): * Texas 71: From a few hundred yards east of Interstate 35 to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. The first 2.1 miles of this 3.6-mile project, from I-35 to west of Riverside Drive, is under construction using tax dollars. Construction on all segments would begin by 2005. Total new costs: $112 million. This works out to 31.1M / mile in additional costs. * U.S. 183 (Ed Bluestein Boulevard): From I-35 (including a new direct ramp from I-35 to U.S. 183) to the interchange with Texas 71. The 2.3-mile segment from I-35 to Springdale Road is under construction. Construction on all portions of this 12.6-mile project would begin by 2006. Total new costs: $479 million. This is an additional 38.4M / mile. * U.S. 290 West: From Williamson Creek, where the freeway currently ends, west to near RM 1826. Construction on this 2.7-mile segment will begin this year. Cost: $185 million. This works out to 68.5M / mile. * U.S. 290 East: From U.S. 183 east for 5.7 miles to Texas 130, a turnpike around Austin’s east side under construction. Officials estimate construction will begin in 2007. Cost: $400 million. This work out to 70.1M / mile. You wrote an article in the Spring which examined in depth the cost of road building which documented that for recent area project the cost per mile is about 20-30M. Along come the toll roads with costs of 50M+ / mile (I'm assuming the TX71 and US183 projects had already budgeted 20-30M / mile so the additional 31.1M and 38.4M respectively would work out to a minimum of 51.1M / 58.4M per mile respectively). (I left out the Loop 360 and Tx45SW as they are inline with the 20-30M / mile rule of thumb). Am I missing something or are toll roads going to be a lot more expensive than if the state built using limited tax dollars? Thanks, Brendan Read/Post Comments (0) Previous Entry :: Next Entry Back to Top