User:Loneoso/sandbox

Explanation for tollways
Toll Ways, sometimes are seen as a recent addition to travel options for commuters. However, this is not the case. In fact the need for, use of, and discussion of toll ways can be traced back to 1939. According to the Federal Highway Administration's Highway History "In the 1939 report to Congress, Toll Roads and Free Roads, the U.S. Bureau of Public           Roads (BPR) rejected the toll option for financing Interstate construction because most         Interstate corridors would not generate enough toll revenue to retire the bonds that         would be issued to finance them. In part, the report attributed this conclusion to "the traffic-repelling tendency of the proposed toll-road system." Although some corridors had        enough traffic to support bond financing, the report predicted that motorists would stay         on the parallel toll-free roads to a large extent.        That conclusion was called into question when the first segment of the Pennsylvania         Turnpike, from Carlisle to Irwin, opened on October 1, 1940. It was an instant financial         success. Following World War II, the turnpike's continued success prompted other States         to use the same financing method. Each State established a toll authority to issue bonds.         Revenue from the bonds provided the funds, up front, to pay for construction. Toll         revenue allowed the toll authority to repay bond holders with interest and finance         administration, maintenance, and operation of the highway.

The use of this toll system is related to the state of Texas as on might infer. For the state of Texas, and more specifically Central Texas has seen a significant growth in recent years. The United States Census Bureau reports that in 2010 Texas had a population just over 25 million citizens. It is estimated that the population grew over five percent in just three years to nearly 26.5 million people. This growth is great for the state of Texas, but has exposes an area of concern. This area of concern is the infrastructure; specifically the lack of thoroughfares that can effectively move the increased vehicle traffic. An answer that that has been provided to address this concern is the implementation of Toll ways. While not a recent phenomena toll way construction is more prevalent now than in recent years.

It must be stated that this is not an attempt to discourage, nor encourage anyone from the idea of toll ways or their use. The information provided is meant to allow a better understanding of how and why Toll ways are used.

Central Texas Tolls
The cost of operating and maintaining the roads ways used by commuters is quite costly. Yet, these cost are often not considered when the need for a road strikes the public's mind. To this end (financing), tolls collected help the end be reached. The Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority is charged with the management and construction of toll ways of toll ways in central Texas. According to the CTRMA's Financial/Investor Information information page "The Mobility Authority uses innovative financial strategies to expedite the funding of needed transportation projects. Our nationally recognized, award-winning approach is using a mix of toll revenue bonds, government loans, toll equity grants, right-of-way donations and other funding sources to develop a transportation network that will help address the region's growing congestion problems." Detailed earnings and investment statements are available for each road under the CTRMA's authority. Use of funds generated by the commuters in central Texas are explained here, as well. One use/benefit of the toll system is the HERO Program.

The Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority has provided a program to assist disabled drivers. The HERO Program, is a combined effort of "[t]he Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority, in partnership with the Texas Department of Transportation, operates the Highway Emergency Response Operator (HERO) Program – a free roadside assistance program that provides aid to stranded motorists, minimizes traffic congestion and improves highway safety along Interstate 35 in Central Texas... [and] The program is being paid for through a combination of federal and state funds, and it costs roughly $2.3 million a year to provide the service.

While on the note of pros and cons of what kind of programs the CTRMA has brought into Central Texas and its financing issues; it is important to mention a pro belief for toll roads that was mentioned in the The Texas Tribune, "that tolls: are 'vital' to the state's future mobility planning as Texas tries to close the gap on road funding shortfall. The article explains how the gas tax (38.4 cents per gallon of gas) hasn't been increased since 1993 and costs of building roadways has increased throughout time supporting the construction of toll roads.

A con to one of the Central Texas toll projects is that the company that runs the SH-130 toll road has been said by Moody's business rating to have the possibility of defaulting on its debt in 2014 therefore Moody's lowered the business rating to B1. A B1 classification "indicates that the business is pretty risky to lend money to". The sponsors of the toll road are Zachary (a San Antonio, Texas based company), which sponsored 65%, and Cintra (a company based out of Spain) that sponsored 35%. The lenders to the project: TIFIA program under the Federal Highway Administration which contributed $475 million, and several other banks that funded $686 million.

Despite the fact that the partner companies (Cintra and Zachary) are defaulting on debt, the chairman for the SH 130 (130 Toll) Concession Company reiterated that in time the project would, "prove a wise investment as drivers look for an alternative to Interstate 35." Even though traffic volume has been low on SH130 Krier (Chairman for the SH 130 Concession Company) went on to state that the company, "...is pretty confident that in the long term, this is going to be a huge transportation asset for the region."