Texas Department of Transportation Executive Director Amadeo Saenz told an audience of more than a thousand people Jan. 6 at an Austin hotel that due to public outcry, the Trans-Texas Corridor, as a name and as a concept of Texas’s transportation future, has been dropped in favor of a more user-friendly approach. But Saenz said that all elements of the original plan, including a tollway twin to I-35, could be built as stand-alone projects if and when they are necessary.
"The Trans-Texas Corridor, as a single-project concept, is not the choice of Texans, so we decided to put the name to rest," said Amadeo Saenz Jr., executive director of the Texas Department of Transportation, at the agency's annual Texas Transportation Forum in Austin. "To be clear, the Trans-Texas Corridor as it is known, no longer exists."
Saenz said overwhelming public response was a key factor in the agency's decision to abandon the plan, and he pledged that the agency would rely heavily on input from Texans through more town hall meetings and an updated Web site.
"One practical lesson we've taken away from this experience is, we need to do a better job of communicating," he said. "We need to do a better job of listening."
The Legislature, Saenz said, has made it clear TxDOT must change and become more accountable and transparent.
The renewed effort now will operate under the name "Innovative Connectivity in Texas" to usher in a new method of operation, Saenz said.
In 2002, Gov. Rick Perry unveiled the corridor plan as an almost $200 billion blueprint for the state's transportation future and then took withering criticism for it in a tough 2006 re-election race. On Jan. 6, he said, "The days of the Trans-Texas Corridor are over."
From the beginning, the idea drew criticism, which intensified after Perry announced the state had contracted with a Spanish consortium to build and operate one of the sections of the controversial network.
Last January, town hall meetings north and west of Houston drew thousands of residents but few supporters for the plan. Rural property owners, in particular, disapproved of the plan, complaining it would take too much private land, and bring traffic and crime to rural areas.
Several years ago, TxDOT officials conceded that much of the plan, particularly its West Texas pieces, would not be needed until far in the future, if ever. And the Trans-Texas Corridor idea all along generated fierce opposition, including from some Perry allies like the Texas Farm Bureau that objected to the large amounts of farm and ranch land that would be lost.
Saenz's surprise announcement came a week before legislators gather for a session during which they must decide whether to allow TxDOT to continue pursuing long-term toll road leases with private companies.
TxDOT officials couldn't say how much had been spent on the corridor plan.
Cintra-Zachry, a Spanish and American consortium hired by TxDOT to develop a plan for the I-35 twin, signed a contract for $3.5 million. But the agency has spent much more on environmental work, public meetings, legal fees and other consulting on the agreements associated with the plan.
TxDOT spokesman Chris Lippincott said almost none of that money should be considered wasted. "We're still going to build Texas 130 ... we're still going to build I-69," Lippincott said. "Maybe we wasted some money developing a TTC logo, but that's about it."
