Transcript HOT Lane Discussion

HOT Lanes on I-77
How did we get here and what do we do?
October 30, 2014
The Problem
Congested stretch
of four lane road
from mm21 to
exit 36…
with “no money”
to widen it
A Solution
Add a general purpose lane
in both directions
• 13 miles
• $80- 130M (est)
Source: “I-77 Feasibility Study,” December 7, 2009
The Current Plan
Privately Operated
Toll Lanes
• 27.5 Miles
• $655 M
• 50 year contract
• Cintra, a Spanish
company
Source: NCDOT Press Release, April 11, 2014
Taxpayer Contribution
 Taxpayer Up-front Payment
$88M
 For private tolling lanes
 Taxpayer Subsidy
$75M
 To cover potential revenue shortfalls
 Taxpayer Liability
$215M
 Government-backed bonds
 26.5 miles of public right-of-way
 Leased exclusively at no cost to private
company for 50 years
Source: I-77 JLTCO Report, 4-25-14, WI77 analysis
Example: Toll Lane Flyover
Source: NCDOT
The Cost Of Toll Lanes
A bloated non-solution that siphons millions
from our economy for generations
Source: I-77 JLTCO Report, 4-25-14, WI77 analysis
How Did We Get Here?
 State Level
 Regional Level
 Local Level
How Did We Get Here?
“We have $70 billion in
identified and ranked
transportation projects
with only $11 billion to
pay the bill.”
Some NC Transportation “Needs”
 $6.4 Billion for toll roads
 9 out of 10 most expensive projects are tolled
 $4.6 billion “cost to NCDOT”
 $717 million for new 4-lane
 From Lenoir (pop 19,000) to Tarleton (pop
11,000)
 $306 million to widen NC-33
 From Grimesland (pop 400) to Aurora (pop 500)
 $600 Million for Urban Loops
 Wilkesboro, Red Springs, Lillington et al
With these “needs”, no wonder NCGA really wants to build tolls…
Source: NCDOT 9-24-14 Priority 3.0 Final Scores
North Carolina’s First Toll Road
Triangle Expressway Financial Results
$30
Operating Exp: $21M
$20
$10
$$(10)
Revenues: $24M
$(20)
$(30)
$47M Annual
Shortfall
$(40)
$(50)
$(60)
Who pays the difference?
Source: NCTA Annual Report, WI77
analysis
Debt Service:
~$50M
How Did We Get Here?
 State Level  Supports tolling
 Regional Level
 Local Level
How Did We Get Here: Part 2
 $158 Million bonus for building tolls
(HB-817)
 Allocated by CRTPO (formerly
MUMPO)
 Initially ranked widening I-77 w/ general
lanes as #92
 Voted unanimously for toll lanes
Bonus Allocation
Source: Transportation Funding Update, Huntersville Town Board, Oct 20, 2014
Bonus Allocation
Source: Ibid.
Bonus money ensures regional support for tolls…
How Did We Get Here?
 State Level  Supports tolling
 Regional Level  Supports tolling
 Local Level
Local Efforts
 June 21:
 A majority of LKN
commisioners request
Governor to delay
contract signing
 June 26:
 NCDOT:“No foundation
for delay”
 Sign contract
Local voices ignored…
How Did We Get Here?
 State Level  Supports tolling
 Regional Level  Supports tolling
 Local Level  Ignored by NCDOT
It’s up to us…
Widen I-77’s Efforts
 20+ presentations
 Exposure on virtually every local media
outlet
 National exposure
 Washington Times
 Wall Street Journal
 ABC News
 Public engagement




~5,000 petition signatures
~1,000 cards to the governor
4,000+ FB “likes”
Blog hits ~ 100K+
Widen I-77’s Efforts (Con’t)
 Retained Legal Counsel
 Determine most viable strategies for
legal action
Next Steps
 File injunction*
 Bring suit*
 Re-rank GP project
*as funding allows
About Widen I-77
 A 501(c) (3) organization
 Donations are tax deductible
 Subject to IRS reporting and auditing
It’s up to us…
Thank You
WidenI77
PO Box 792
Cornelius, NC 28031
[email protected]
wideni77.org
Your donations are tax-deductible. Fifty
years of tolls aren’t.
Appendix
Typical Access Point
Source: Executed Comprehensive Agreement
A New Funding Paradigm: STI
 Passed last summer
 HB 817
 Replaces Equity Formula
 Favored rural over urban areas
 More data-driven
 Supposed to remove pork politicking
Highest
scoring funded
project
73
“Statewide”
funded
projects
 I77 General Purpose Lane Project
Projects to be funded
Projects unfunded
I-77 GP project
through Lake
Norman
I77 scores
higher than
33 funded
projects
Lowest scoring
funded project
377 Unfunded Projects
A General Purpose Lane Project Would Likely Be Funded…
The Bad News: STI Corridor Cap
 A maximum of 10% of projected
funding in the “statewide” category
 A “corridor” is defined as “any
contiguous projects or group of
projects”
 Since I-77 South (i.e. Charlotte)
scores higher it would use all corridor
cap money
 NCDOT says corridor cap applies... we
disagree, but…
The Good News…
 Corridor cap only applies to
STATEWIDE Category
 I-77 LKN could still be funded under
Regional and Division categories
 60% of total fundng
 ~$9B dollars
 I-77 general use project eligible to be
ranked as early as July 2014!
Six Month Wait vs 50 Years of Tolls
NCDOT STI Scores for I-77 Project
How Does This Rank Against Other Statewide Projects?