Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Texas > San Antonio
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 02-23-2009, 10:05 PM
 
81 posts, read 229,280 times
Reputation: 41

Advertisements

The prospect of (at least four) free connector ramps for 281/1604 is getting closer to a reality. Time to contact the Texas Transportation Commission (Texas Transportation Commission Contacts (http://www.txdot.gov/contact_us/commission.htm - broken link)) and urge them to allocate funding for this project without strings attached, and specifically without requiring tolls. According to the article below, they will decide on Thursday (2/26).

Quote:
But reports that state strings may come with approval of the project are concerning.

David Lebowitz with the MPO notes it’s a “take-it-or-leave-it proposition. Either the 281 and 1604 interchange was going to be tolled or we weren't going to get the money at all.”

Right now the board says if the Texas Transportation Commission does that when it meets this week some feel it could be the death of the project.

MPO board member Kevin Wolff says, “If they say it's gotta be tolled, we switch it around, it's off the table. We've looked at that before out there. I think the people have made it pretty clear out there that's not what they want.”

The state should decide Thursday. If approved the Regional Mobility Authority would build the interchange.
Board grapples with 281/1604 interchange funding questions | WOAI.COM: San Antonio News

Move It! (http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblogs/traffic/2009/02/board-approves-ramps-to-link-u.html - broken link)
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 02-23-2009, 10:11 PM
cwh
 
345 posts, read 942,034 times
Reputation: 109
Quote:
Originally Posted by ddrewa View Post
The prospect of (at least four) free connector ramps for 281/1604 is getting closer to a reality. Time to contact the Texas Transportation Commission (Texas Transportation Commission Contacts (http://www.txdot.gov/contact_us/commission.htm - broken link)) and urge them to allocate funding for this project without strings attached, and specifically without requiring tolls. According to the article below, they will decide on Thursday (2/26).



Board grapples with 281/1604 interchange funding questions | WOAI.COM: San Antonio News

Move It! (http://blogs.mysanantonio.com/weblogs/traffic/2009/02/board-approves-ramps-to-link-u.html - broken link)
Just because the fed is going to pay for it, does not mean it is free. We are going to pay for that for a long time...
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 02-24-2009, 07:28 AM
 
18,041 posts, read 25,061,271 times
Reputation: 16721
Quote:
Originally Posted by cwh View Post
Just because the fed is going to pay for it, does not mean it is free. We are going to pay for that for a long time...
Who said that is free?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 02-24-2009, 07:51 AM
 
14,637 posts, read 34,876,665 times
Reputation: 6683
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dopo View Post
Who said that is free?
The OP, in the first sentence. It's the italicized word.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 02-24-2009, 08:34 AM
 
81 posts, read 229,280 times
Reputation: 41
Quote:
Originally Posted by cwh View Post
Just because the fed is going to pay for it, does not mean it is free. We are going to pay for that for a long time...
Oh, I certainly agree with you. But the opportunity for that argument is over. Now that the bill has been passed, the money will be spent somewhere.

By using the word free, I implied that there would be no direct cost to the drivers (e.g., freeway versus toll road).
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 02-24-2009, 10:45 AM
 
Location: San Antonio
1,314 posts, read 3,161,867 times
Reputation: 848
I wasn't there, but I think Kevin Wolff's comments were misinterpreted. I think he was saying that before the stimulus funding was available, the only way the state would partially fund the interchange was if it was tolled to provide the local matching funds. Now that a new pot of local money is available in the form of the stimulus funds, that can be used in lieu of tolling as the local share. He even says "Either the 281 and 1604 interchange was going to be tolled or we weren't going to get the money at all." But again, I'm just speculating as to what he really meant.

Quote:
By using the word free, I implied that there would be no direct cost to the drivers (e.g., freeway versus toll road).
The term freeway is often misused to mean a road free from tolls. Although admittedly some dictionaries actually have this as a secondary definition, that's a product of this common usage and is technically incorrect. If that were the case, then the little street in front of my house would be a freeway, and I think we all instinctively know that's not the case. According to the FHWA, freeway is defined thusly:

"A divided arterial highway designed for the unimpeded flow of large traffic volumes. Access to a freeway is rigorously controlled and intersection grade separations are required."

Put in layman's terms, that means a high-speed highway with a median or barrier down the middle, access only via entrance and exit ramps, and overpasses at intersections. Note that there is no mention of being free from tolls.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 02-24-2009, 11:07 AM
 
81 posts, read 229,280 times
Reputation: 41
Yeah, I wasn't there either--just read the articles. It does seem quite odd that TTC could insist on tolls when the funds are already available for construction. But then, TxDOT has taken some fairly illogical actions in the past.

Don't disparage secondary definitions!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 02-24-2009, 11:31 AM
 
Location: San Antonio
1,314 posts, read 3,161,867 times
Reputation: 848
Quote:
Originally Posted by ddrewa View Post
Yeah, I wasn't there either--just read the articles. It does seem quite odd that TTC could insist on tolls when the funds are already available for construction. But then, TxDOT has taken some fairly illogical actions in the past.
True, they have made some obviously dumb decisions, but to be fair, they've been under pressure from the governor & TTC to toll anything that's feasible, so they've become the scapegoat for a lot of this, much of the time unfairly IMO.

Quote:
Don't disparage secondary definitions!
They're usually my favorites!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 02-24-2009, 12:08 PM
 
2,027 posts, read 7,001,498 times
Reputation: 638
How would an interchange at 281/1604 work if 281 is still going to be stoplights? An express interchange to wait in line at lights... would it even be feasible to build an interchange without improving 281?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 02-24-2009, 12:50 PM
 
431 posts, read 1,198,617 times
Reputation: 350
Quote:
Originally Posted by tgannaway89 View Post
How would an interchange at 281/1604 work if 281 is still going to be stoplights? An express interchange to wait in line at lights... would it even be feasible to build an interchange without improving 281?
The interchange is not for the benefit of the section of 281 north of 1604. It is for those turning left or right onto 1604 from 281 (people that sit through several light cycles in front of HEB on the access road), and for those who head south on 281 from either direction on 1604.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Texas > San Antonio
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top