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Follow TURFTexans to TxDOT: No stimulus funds for toll roads! Slow down and fix it first, invest stimulus wisely
Austin, TX, March 3, 2009 – The Texas Transportation Commission is poised to ram through $1.7 billion of new stimulus-funded projects at their meeting Thursday. The project list is chock full of controversial projects, including the Grand Parkway in Houston, the US-281 toll road across the Edwards aquifer in San Antonio, more toll roads to nowhere, and sprawl highways through environmentally-sensitive areas. Further, many Texans object to spending stimulus on toll roads.
On Tuesday morning, Texans from across the state will converge at the capitol to demand that Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) slow down and do this right. We must ensure our federal stimulus isn't wasted on boondoggles!
What: Joint citizen press conference on stimulus funds
Who:
Texans United for Reform and Freedom (TURF), Terri Hall,
Sierra Club Lone Star Chapter, Ken Kramer,
Environment Texas, Alejandro Savransky,
Independent Texans, Linda Curtis,
Houston Tomorrow, Jay Crossley,
Citizens' Transportation Coalition (CTC), Robin Holzer,
When: Tuesday, Mar 3, 2009 at 9:15 am
Where: East steps of the Texas capitol, Austin, TX
Visuals: Texas capitol, Texans on the steps, TxDOT headquarters across the street
Background:
In February, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) allocated $2.25 billion in federal transportation funds to Texas. The US Department of Transportation (DOT) will allow states up to one year to decide which projects to build.