Saturday's Internet Edition, May 17, 2008.
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TxDOT said, “The Lee County crowd was the largest crowd attending any of these meetings we have had, including those in Austin.”
Last week’s meeting was part of the third round concerning the Trans-Texas Corridor and the first held in Lee County. Lee County Judge Evan Gonzales was instrumental in getting TxDOT to schedule a meeting here. By far, the majority of the residents who came from all parts of the County were opposed to the Corridor going through Lee County. Three of the four proposed routes run through Lee County. (See map).
Lee County Commissioners’ Court has not taken an official stance on the proposed Corridor; however, they have been considering passing a resolution reflecting the public’s opinion on the project. Citizens can contact their County Commissioner and/or the County Judge to let them know their opinion. Contact can be either by telephone, letter or at the Public Input Section held before each of the Commissioners’ Court meetings.
The next Commissioners’ Court meeting will be held in Lexington at the Wilson Boyd Building on Highway 77 on March 28 at 10 a.m.
To let TxDOT know your opinion of the project, the Lexington Leader will be publishing a copy of TxDOT’s Comment Form within the next two weeks. The form is also available at the Leader’s office. This is the same form that has been distributed at each of the public meetings. Any written comments must be submitted or postmarked by Friday, April 22, 2005 to TxDOT to be included in the official record of the 2005 Spring Public Meetings. Comments submitted after that date will be considered in future steps of the process.
TxDOT will identify the preferred corridor, out of four proposed (+/- 10 miles wide) this summer.
Lee County’s State Representative Robby Cook (D-Eagle Lake) along with State Representatives Lois Kolkhorst (R-Brehnam) and Dennis Bonnen (R-Angleton), have filed HB1273 which addresses some frequent criticisms of the Trans-Texas Corridor.
The bill would limit the proposed Corridor to 800 feet from 1200 feet. “We have heard that one mile of the Corridor would result in the loss of 146 acres of farmland. That is unacceptable,” Rep. Cook said.
The bill would also eliminate the franchising of businesses along the corridor by road contractors. This provision would have allowed gas stations and restaurants along the corridor so that travelers would not have to exit the corridor. “This would be detrimental to our wonderful small towns and local tourism in rural Texas,” Rep. Cook stated. “The only benefit of a highway system is the people it brings through an area, and this provision would have eliminated even that slight advantage.”
The bill also requires access on, off, and across every state highway and local FM road. The bill also eliminates the “non-competition” clause in the TTC, which currently allows the TTC operators the ability to stop other public road projects in an area if they felt it would lower profitability of their investment.
Lastly the bill requires that any toll fee increase or collection fee increase must meet approval of the Transportation Commission and not be left to the private company exclusively.
The intent of this legislation is to allow for more transparency, accountability and less of a footprint on the land and ensure that rural areas can access the Trans- Texas Corridor.
More information about the proposed Trans-Texas Corridor can be found on the web at www.keeptexasmoving.org or citizens can send their comments to TTC-35, P.O. Box 14707, Austin, TX 78761-4707.