Published: January 06, 2009 10:27 pm      

State scraps corridor plan

Perry says controversial outsourced toll road won’t be built

AUSTIN (AP) — State officials said Tuesday they are scrapping the proposed network of tolls roads known as the Trans-Texas Corridor, a massive transportation project that critics called an expensive boondoggle.

“The days of the Trans-Texas Corridor are over, it’s finished up,” said Gov. Rick Perry, who had proposed the idea as a way to relieve highway congestion in Texas. Speaking on a conference call from Iraq, Perry said, “The name ’Trans-Texas Corridor’ is over with.”

Amadeo Saenz, executive director of the Texas Department of Transportation, unveiled new guidelines Tuesday for developing a network of toll roads, rails and pipelines that have grown ever-more controversial since Perry began promoting the idea in 2002. Associates of the governor have said for weeks the corridor would not take shape as originally envisioned.

Perry said projects like Interstate 69 — which would run from northeast Texas to the Rio Grande Valley — and highways that will run parallel to north-south I-35 will continue, he said. He also said Texas’ commitment to building roads is what attracts many companies and their jobs to the state, he said.

“I think the concept of the Trans-Texas Corridor is frankly one that got misunderstood,” Perry said.

The governor said it’s not a public relations failure on his part or a rejection of his views. He said Texans realize, as he’s been pointing out, that there’s major congestion along I-35 and other highways. He said Texans want to see their leaders have broad visions and not be “sticking our heads in the sand.”

“I’m not afraid of taking on big and tough issues,” Perry said.

Saenz said major corridor projects will now comprise several small segments closer to 600 feet wide. Original plans called for corridors up to 1,200 feet wide to allow for several modes of transportation and utility transmission facilities.

Road-building is a cornerstone of Perry’s administration and is certain to be an issue in his 2010 re-election bid. His potential primary opponent, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, also has said transportation should be one of the state’s top priorities.

The Trans-Texas Corridor was envisioned as a huge set of highways, rail and utility lines crisscrossing the state, but it came under fire almost since its inception. Rural landowners in particular were opposed to giving up their property for the project.