The Collin County Observer

On Thursday, the North Texas Tollway Authority deposited almost $3.2 billion with TxDOT as the "upfront" concession fee for SH 121.

"SH 121 now becomes not just a part of our road system, but a part of our financial system"
NTTA Chairman Paul N. Wageman

At a ceremony in Carrollton, NTTA Chairman Paul N. Wageman presented an oversized check to Texas Transportation Commission Chairman Ric Williamson, and North Richland Hills Mayor and Chairman of the North Texas Regional Transportation Council (RTC) Chairman T. Oscar Trevino, Jr.

In a NTTA press release, Wageman was quoted as saying, "SH 121 now becomes not just a part of our road system, but a part of our financial system"

When complete, the SH 121 toll project will be a 25.9 mile all-electronic toll road from McKinney where SH 121 intersects with U.S. 75 west to near the Tarrant County line. Per the project agreement, the NTTA will operate the tollroad for 50 years. The NTTA will assume responsibility for SH 121 in 2008.

“Our work on SH 121 is just beginning. The responsibility of delivering this project now passes to our engineering, maintenance and operations team who will complete and operate the entire 26-mile toll road by 2012,” added Chairman Wageman.

"The risk is that with its payment for 121, the NTTA won't have the money needed to finance the Trinity, the Southwest Parkway and the other projects it has committed to building."
Michael Morris, NCTCOG

Critics of the NTTA plan, including Michael Morris of the NCTCOG have expressed concerns that the Tollway Authority is taking on too much debt. In a Friday Dallas Morning News article, Morris was quoted as saying, "The risk is that with its payment for 121, the NTTA won't have the money needed to finance the Trinity, the Southwest Parkway and the other projects it has committed to building."

The last Texas Legislature, responding to public pressure to keep the highway out of the hands of foreign companies supported by TxDOT and the Governor, required TxDOT to reopen the bidding process after they had tentatively awarded the SH 121 contract to a consortium led by Spanish owned Cintra. In the rebid, NTTA offered substantially higher concession fee, and was awarded the contract to build and operate the new 121 tollway for 50 years.

Collin County is scheduled to receive about $580 million from the concession fee for local construction projects.

Bill