| Trans-texas Corridor |
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The Trans-Texas Corridor ('''TTC''') is a transportation network in the planning and early construction stages in the , Commuter , and High-speed Rail . Services expected to be carried in the utility corridor include Water , Electricity , Natural Gas , Petroleum , Fiber Optic Lines , and other Telecommunications services. The Trans-Texas Corridor will allow passenger vehicular Speed Limit s of up to . Speed Limits on Trans-Texas Corridor. The network will be funded by private investors and built and expanded as demand warrants. NETWORK shipped through Texas, a major trade gateway from Mexico and South America , as red lines branching out from the heart of the Lone Star State.]] The TTC is a multi-use, state-wide system that will include new and existing highways, railways, and utility - Zachry signed a Comprehensive Development Agreement which authorized $3.5 million of planning for TTC-35. This agreement did not designate the alignment, authorize construction, set toll rates or who collects them, and did not eliminate competition for future services. TTC contracts & agreements Currently there have been no contracts awarded to develop or finance any other corridor. I-69/TTC contracts & agreements CORRIDORS There are two initial TTC corridors under consideration: One would parallel Interstate 35 (I-35), from Gainesville to Laredo and passing the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex , Austin and San Antonio . The other would be an extension of Interstate 69 , from Texarkana past Houston to either Laredo or the Rio Grande Valley . Two additional high priority potential corridors would parallel Interstate 45 from Dallas to Houston and Interstate 10 from El Paso to Orange Crossroads of the Americas: Trans Texas Corridor Plan Report Summary . TTC-35 The study area for Trans-Texas Corridor-35 (TTC-35) generally parallels I-35 to the east from Laredo to the in the summer of 2007 TTC-35 Environmental Study Timeline . The draft EIS includes 12 different study corridor alternatives by choosing among four variations along the route. The first variation, from Laredo to southeast of San Antonio, would either include the current I-35 alignment until curving off to the east at a point south of San Antonio or would follow a more direct route to the east. The study area for all alternatives continues northeast, paralleling I-35. The second variation would either pass just to the east of the municipal boundaries along I-35 from Austin to Temple or further east. The third variation would either pass to the west of Fort Worth or east of Dallas. The fourth variation is dependent on the eastern third variation and would either rejoin the western third variation near the Oklahoma border or would end at the Oklahoma border near U.S. Highway 75 . On June 28 , 2006 , Cintra - Zachry reached a $1.3 billion agreement with the state to build segments 5 and 6 of SH 130 . The Cintra-Zachry Preliminary Financial Plan (TTC-35 Development Agreement, Exhibit C) shows the expected toll revenue to be collected for Segment 5 and 6 at $14.9 Billion over 50 years. The Preliminary Financial Plan for Segment 5 and 6 also shows $12.4 Billion in Earnings before Taxes (EBIT) for the Developer. SH 130 is being considered as the TTC segment through the Austin area. I-69/TTC See Also: Interstate 69 in Texas CRITICISM The system has been criticized for a number of reasons. The TTC will be extremely expensive, estimated to cost between ''. Accessed December 3, 2004. While Governor presidential candidate Ron Paul has voiced major opposition to the project, calling it the " NAFTA Superhighway" and saying the road would lead towards a North American Union.1 Jerome R. Corsi an American author and Conservative activist vehemently opposes the Corridor and has written a book called "The Late Great USA, the coming merger with Mexico and Canada" 2 which outlines many of the Trans-Texas Corridor's more intimate and less public details. Jerome at one time was considered a candidate for the Constitution Party 's 2008 Presidential Nomination . 3 4 FINANCING To help pay for building the roads and rails, the highways will be partially financed through private investment. The investors will then operate the highways as Toll Road s. Based on The Cintra-Zachry Preliminary Financial Plan (TTC-35 Development Agreement, Exhibit C) funding the TTC-35 Corridor awarded to Cintra-Zachry shows that 22%(1) of the initial infrastructure costs are shown to be funded with equity provided by Cintra-Zachry. The other 78% is provided by bank loans or bonds arranged by Cintra-Zachry. Based on current federal regulations these bonds can be tax exempt. It is also noted that in the financial plan Cintra-Zachry expects to have 12% return on investment for their equity partners. The 12% return is after taxes, which is approximately equivalent to 16% before taxes. The plan calls for paying off the bank loans and the bonds prior to retiring the equity as shown in cash flow diagrams of the Preliminary Financial Plan (TTC-35 Development Agreement, Exhibit C) With usual bond financing there is a 3:1 ratio between total fees collected and value of capital infrastructure built. With TTC-35 the ratio is in the order of magnitude of 13:1. So while TTC-35 commits to construct $8 billion in infrastructure Cintra-Zachry expects to collect $114 billion in toll revenues as shown in the preliminary plan. The recent State Audit by the Texas State Auditor estimated the toll to be collected for TTC-35 to be $104 Billion or more, confirming the order of magnitude of tolls collected.[http://www.thenation.com/doc/20070827/hayes The NAFTA Superhighway] in ''The Nation'' REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS
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