By Keith Goble, Land Line state legislative editor, April 8, 2011
A bill halfway through the Texas Legislature would authorize the fastest speeds in the nation and put to rest any lingering uncertainty about a proposed superhighway.
Other bills being considered at the statehouse address public-private partnerships to complete road work.
The House voted unanimously Thursday, April 7, to advance a bill to the Senate that would permit the speed limit on certain new roadways to be set at 85 mph. Such authorization would allow drivers to travel faster than anywhere else in the nation.
Speeds of 85 mph could be authorized on highways built after June 1, 2011. The Texas Department of Transportation would be required to perform engineering and traffic studies to determine whether the speed is appropriate.
Texas has more than 520 miles of Interstate 10 and Interstate 20 in west Texas posted at 80 mph during the day for motorists while trucks are limited to 70 mph. Speeds for all vehicles are lowered to 65 mph at night.
Todd Spencer, executive vice president for the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, said the uniformity of speeds is truckers’ primary concern.
“The only speed limit policy that makes sense is to have all vehicles traveling at the same speed,” Spencer said.
A separate provision in the bill – HB1201 – would write the Trans-Texas Corridor out of the books.
The corridor was the pet project of Gov. Rick Perry. Approved in 2003, the proposed 4,000-mile network of toll roads was billed as setting the path for a NAFTA superhighway stretching from the Mexican border to Canada.
After years of debate in Austin, the multibillion-dollar TTC was declared dead in 2009, but concern about language still on the books has spurred additional action.
The bill would remove any reference to the failed highway project from statute, which would bring the state in line with the cancellation of the project.
OOIDA has criticized the corridor plan since it was unveiled. The Association cited reasons that included the proposed toll rate of 50 cents per mile for large trucks.
Another toll bill drawing consideration in the Texas House would authorize the use of public-private partnerships to get road work done. Intended to boost projects at the local level, HB3789 would authorize the state or regional tolling authorities to work with private groups to complete projects “identified in the statewide transportation plan.”
Still other bills pursue partnerships with private groups on road work. The Senate voted Thursday to advance three bills that would allow TxDOT to make deals for work on a 28-mile segment of Interstate 35 East between I-635 and U.S. 380, a nine-mile portion of state Highway 183 between state Highway 161 and I-35 E, and five segments of the North Tarrant Expressway project. Senators already approved a separate bill that would authorize a partnership for the Grand Parkway, state Highway 99, in Houston.
SB1007, SB1017, SB1144 and SB1145, respectively, have been forwarded to the House for further consideration.
OOIDA encourages Texas truckers to contact their state lawmakers about these bills.
To view other legislative activities of interest for Texas, click here.
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