Print Version
E-mail This StoryResidents from the various cities of Collin County met at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the Allen City Hall for a public hearing hosted by the North Central Texas Council of Governments on Thursday.
NCTCOG addressed concerns of transportation needs and use of revenue in not only Collin County but the eight other counties in the region.
The majority of the meeting centered on the Regional Toll Revenue. RTR received $2.5 billion from the North Texas Tollway Agency when State Highway 121 was converted to a tollway project. Of that money $1.4 billion will go into Collin County with more than $800 million going to fund new projects within the cities. Excess money will go to complete SH 121 and meet other program needs.
The funding breaks down depending on city needs. The largest amount — $239 million — of the new project funds will be going to McKinney, with $201 million of that amount scheduled for the widening of U.S. Highway 75.
Prosper will receive the next highest amount at $81 million to continue work on U.S. 380.
Allen will receive $74 million with a majority of those funds going to work on U.S. 75.
Frisco is projected to receive $72 million which will also fund work on U.S. 380.
Plano will receive 3 percent of the total revenue at $24 million. Mainly inner city street projects and upgrades will be the focus of the spending.
Ronald Jones, mayor of Garland, spoke during the open forum to show support for the projects from the RTR. He said many of the projects listed for funding could not be completed without the council.
Allen Upchurch, Plano city engineer, wanted to add more projects to the list. He said he hopes the council will re-think its decision not to fund a West Plano park and ride. The region would benefit from such a project, considering its close proximity to SH 121 and the Dallas North tollway, Upchurch said.
But there were others who felt what had made the list of projects were necessary steps forward in better city planning. Paul Conrad, an Allen resident, said he likes to ride his bike to work, and it is great that the council is funding routes for alternate transportation along major roads.
This was the fourth of a four public hearing presented by the council. Michael Morris, Director of Transportation, said, “From the results of the public meetings, we will make a final set of recommendations to the Regional Transportation Council.”
The RTC will meet on Aug. 21 to finalize the project list for action at the Sept. 11 meeting.
The other concern the NCTCOG wanted to address was a status report on the Rail North Texas project. The project would create 251 miles of light rail throughout North Texas. Morris said the idea for the rail was not created from environmental activist pressures, but from the need to create a diversity of transportation for investment.
“It was the business community that wanted to have a dependable source of transportation,” Morris said.
Though the rail project still lacks from funding and they will go before the 2009 state legislature with a bill to raise money either in the form of sales tax, gas tax or even a new resident fee of $100 per car.
Morris said this might be the council’s last chance to get funding for the rail system in North Texas. They brought two bills before the 2007 legislature that were turned down.
“I feel in 2009 if the bill does not pass, the regional rail will not happen in the form it needs to,” Morris said.
The RTR will approve the list of projects by the end of August. Visit http://www.nctcog.org/trans/tip/cda/index.asp for the list of projects and send comments and recommendations to Christie Jestis at cjestis@nctcog.org.
