Regional Mobility Initiatives Vol. III, No. 1 February 1998 Toll Roads are a key aspect of our future regional transportation system. Faced with a growing financial shortfall to fund needed freeway system improvements, additional toll road construction is one of several initiatives being pursued to improve mobility in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area. New freeway construction and system maintenance in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area have historically been financed through motor fuel taxes and vehicle registration fees. Transportation funding levels from these traditional sources, however, are not keeping pace with the growing demand for new facilities. A recent study by the Texas Department of Transportation revealed that only 33 percent of the State s transportation needs are likely to be met over the next ten years given current transportation funding levels. Similar conclusions have been reached for the Dallas-Fort Worth Area. NCTCOG analysis reveals that between now and the year, only percent of the funds needed to maintain current mobility levels are likely to be available. While transportation revenues continue to be in short supply, transportation demand is rising. Between 1980 and 1995, the dramatic growth in population and employment, combined with increased suburbanization and a growing number of vehicles per household, resulted in a 60 percent increase in the daily vehicle miles of travel. By the year, travel demand is projected to increase by an additional 70 percent, with vehicle miles of travel exceeding 180 million miles per weekday. Nearly 50 percent of this travel will occur on the region s already overcrowded freeway system. While greater use of technology in managing the freeways will add capacity, system expansion through other financing mechanisms is needed to keep traffic moving. The Regional Transportation Council, in conjunction with the North Texas Tollway Authority, local governments, and state agencies, is pursuing alternative sources of financing for new freeway construction. One key mechanism is the construction of toll roads. By building more toll roads, we can reduce the revenue shortfall as well as the time needed to construct new facilities, thereby improving regional mobility. Dallas North Tollway looking south towards the Galleria and Interstate 635-LBJ Freeway Interchange. photo by Minor Creations Photography Mobility : The Metropolitan Transportation Plan calls for the construction of $7.8 billion of freeways over the next 23 years, of which an estimated $2.6 billion or 33 percent of these facilities are identified for potential toll road construction. Ongoing Major Investment and Feasibility Studies, as discussed in this document, will determine the financial viability and specific alignments for new toll facilities. Regional Mobility Initiatives is a report on the transportation planning activities and air quality programs of the North Central Texas Council of Governments and the Regional Transportation Council together serving as the Metropolitan Planning Organization for the Dallas-Fort Worth Area since 1974.
Toll Roads in Texas Toll roads have a successful history in Texas as an alternative mechanism for financing needed roadway improvements that may be implemented within a short period of time. The first toll road built in Texas was the Dallas-Fort Worth Turnpike (DFW Turnpike). Opening in 1957, this roadway connected Downtown Dallas with Downtown Fort Worth. The remarkable success of the project allowed the original bonds to be repaid 17 years ahead of schedule. According to the terms of the original agreement, once the bonds were repaid, the facility was to be converted to a freeway and maintained by the State. In 1977, the transfer took place; tolls were removed, and the DFW Turnpike was renamed Interstate. Today, Interstate carries over 100,000 vehicles per day. The success of the DFW Turnpike and growing travel demand in North Dallas prompted the Texas Turnpike Authority to construct the Dallas North Tollway in 1968. The Dallas North Tollway continues the successful tradition of North Texas toll roads. In the past ten years, the tollway has been extended twice. Today, the facility is over miles long connecting Downtown Dallas to Collin County. Further extensions are being considered. Major Milestones for Toll Roads in North Central Texas 1953 1956 1957 1968 1977 1979 1983 1987 1989 1994 Texas Turnpike Authority Created Interstate Highway Act Enacted DFW Turnpike Opened Dallas North Tollway Opened DFW Turnpike Tolls Removed Mountain Creek Bridge Opened Harris County Toll Road Authority Created Dallas North Tollway Extended Toll Tags Introduced on DNT Dallas North Tollway Extended 1997 North Texas Tollway Authority Created Texas Turnpike Authority and North Texas Tollway Authority The Turnpike Act of 1953 created the Texas Turnpike Authority (TTA) whose responsibility was the construction and maintenance of toll roads throughout the State of Texas. Since its inception, the TTA has been based in Dallas operating the Dallas North Tollway, the Mountain Creek Toll Bridge, and one project outside of the Dallas Metropolitan Area the Houston Ship Channel Bridge. As other areas of the state began investigating the use of toll roads as viable options for new road construction, opportunities for the creation of local turnpike authorities became evident. In 1983, the Harris County Toll Road Authority was created to build and manage toll facilities in the Houston Metropolitan Area. The Houston Ship Channel Bridge was transferred from TTA to the new agency. Presently, the Harris County Toll Road Authority operates three toll facilities, including the Houston Ship Channel Bridge, the Hardy Toll Road, and the Sam Houston Tollway. In 1997, the Texas State Legislature s Sunset Review of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) and TTA resulted in TTA being reorganized and placed within TxDOT. This reorganization provided the opportunity for legislative action to create the North Texas Tollway Authority (NTTA). The NTTA, located in Dallas, is governed by a board of directors currently composed of two county judges, appointees from Dallas, Denton, Collin, and Tarrant Counties, and three directors appointed by the Governor. The NTTA is now responsible for the operation and management of the photo courtesy of the Texas/Dallas History and Archive Division, Dallas Public Library 2
Continued Progress Towards Implementation Strong partnerships among local governments, transportation authorities, and regional and State agencies are needed to ensure that the ongoing momentum to construct toll roads continues. Work is complete on this interchange of the U.S. 75 Central Expressway and the President George Bush Turnpike as efforts are now focused on construction of the Turnpike main lanes. Toll roads are one of several ongoing initiatives to preserve and enhance mobility in the Dallas-Fort Worth Area. The recent conversion of State Highway 190, long planned to be a freeway, to the now-underconstruction President George Bush Turnpike could not have taken place without the cooperation and active involvement of local governments, and regional and State agencies. The Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 provided the foundation for cooperative planning and joint funding opportunities for toll roads. NCTCOG and the Regional Transportation Council remain committed in their role as the Metropolitan Planning Organization to facilitate regional and corridorlevel planning efforts through the major investment study (MIS) process. The MIS process is designed to explore alternatives and include both the public and private sectors in the planning and decisionmaking process. Continuation of the long-standing and successful relationship between TTA (now NTTA) and TxDOT will remain critical as the challenge of integrating facilities becomes more complex and the need for joint funding of projects remains. The role of transportation authorities as providers of public transportation and carpool/vanpool programs will be enhanced and expanded with the advent of HOV lanes as an integral component of toll roads. Local governments will continue to play a critical role in assisting with the preservation of rights-of-way for future toll road construction and the development of compatible land use along toll road corridors. Toll roads must be fully integrated into the region s transportation system in order to maximize their effectiveness. Issues ranging from the appropriate adjacent land use to the location and design of interchanges are critical in ensuring the success of a toll facility. In the future, greater emphasis will be needed on managing traffic volumes on toll facilities through intelligent transportation system technology, congestion pricing strategies, and integrated high occupancy vehicle lanes (HOV). There are two toll road projects currently under construction in the region. The President George Bush Turnpike, formerly known as S.H.190, is being constructed as a toll road from S.H. 78 in Garland to I.H. in Dallas, and is scheduled to be completed by the year 01. Future extensions being considered on both the eastern and western ends of the corridor. Also nearing completion is the Addison Toll Tunnel. This facility will allow the continuation of Keller Springs Road which currently terminates on both sides of the Addison Airport. The tunnel will connect the two segments of the roadway by going under the airport runways, providing additional east/west capacity in this congested area. Both the President George Bush Turnpike and the Addison Toll Tunnel will be connected to the Dallas North Tollway and become part of a regional toll road system. Future toll road users will be able to use the Dallas North Tollway toll tag system to travel on all of these facilities. 3
Regional System Planning Activities NCTCOG staff is working in cooperation with the North Texas Tollway Authority and local governments on each of these projects as progress continues toward the implementation of new toll roads in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area. Mobility : The Metropolitan Transportation Plan identifies regional transportation projects to be constructed over the next two decades. Federal planning requirements mandate that this Plan be constrained to estimates of available financial resources. As a result, toll roads play a critical role in the transportation plan, both as a source of funding and added system capacity. Including projects in the regional transportation plan, however, is only the first step towards eventual financing and construction of the facility. Once included in the Plan, projects must undergo a more detailed evaluation at a corridor level. This process takes place in the form of a major investment study or MIS. The purpose of this analysis is to conduct a detailed assessment of transportation alternatives, including various modes and alignments to ensure that the most cost-effective set of transportation system investments is made. At the conclusion of each MIS, if an alternative is selected that involves the construction of a toll facility, a toll road feasibility study may also be pursued to determine the viability of obtaining bond financing to assist with the construction of the facility. Depending on the type of funding and agencies involved in the construction of the facility, additional environmental studies may also be required prior to beginning the engineering, right-of-way acquisition, and construction. Over the last five years, the Dallas-Fort Worth Area has made great strides, both in planning and implementation of new toll roads. The map below illustrates the location of potential toll road projects in the area. Currently, there are two toll road projects under construction, the President George Bush Turnpike (A) in southern Collin County and northern Dallas County and the Addison Toll Tunnel (B), in the Town of Addison. Also shown on the map are facilities currently being studied as potential toll roads, projects (C) through (I). Finally, projects (J) through (M) have been identified as candidate toll roads and will require study at some point in the future. Information regarding the status of projects is provided Mobility Toll Road Planning Activity STATUS North Central Texas Council of Governments Transportation L M Existing Toll Roads Priority Corridors Temporary Hold Corridors Study Complete New facility locations indicate transportation needs and do not represent specific alignments. Dallas CBD 170 114 J C G B E 190 121 Dallas North Tollway A 635 75 H K 183 8 Trinity Parkway F Ft. Worth CBD D I 161 F 80 D 175 121 360 67 45 287 4
Projects Being Constructed and Evaluated as Potential Toll Roads A PRESIDENT GEORGE BUSH TURNPIKE (S.H. 190T) Limits: IH in Dallas to SH 78 in Garland Status: Under Construction as a Toll Road Estimated Completion Date: 01 B ADDISON TOLL TUNNEL Limits: Connecting Keller Springs Road from Midway Road to Addison Road in Addison Status: Under Construction as a Toll Road Estimated Completion Date: 1999 C PRESIDENT GEORGE BUSH TURNPIKE (S.H. 190T, SEGMENT 4 Referred to as the Superconnector) Limits: IH 635 in Irving to IH in Carrollton Status: Major Investment Study Complete Comments: HOV System to be Integrated with Toll Road D STATE HIGHWAY 121 (SOUTHWEST PARKWAY) Limits: IH in the Fort Worth CBD to Alta Mesa Boulevard in Fort Worth Status: TxDOT Environmental Impact Study Ongoing NTTA Toll Road Investment Grade Study Ongoing Comments: Expansion of Parkway South to Cleburne Planned, Toll Road South of IH a Priority E INTERSTATE HIGHWAY 635 (LBJ) HIGH OCCUPANCY TOLL LANES Limits: IH to US 75 in Dallas Status: TxDOT Environmental Impact Study Ongoing Comments: Recommended as Part of the IH 635 (LBJ Freeway) MIS Locally Preferred F TRINITY PARKWAY Limits: IH to US 175 in Dallas Status: TxDOT Major Investment Study Complete, NTTA Toll Road Investment Grade Study Ongoing Comments: TxDOT Environmental Impact Study Scheduled to Begin Spring 1998 G STATE HIGHWAY 161 (S.H. 190T-W) Limits: IH 635 to Belt Line Road in Irving Status: TxDOT Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement Ongoing, NTTA Toll Road Feasibility Study Ongoing Comments: Logical Extension of the President George Bush Turnpike; TxDOT Construction Funds Available for Interchanges H STATE HIGHWAY 190 EXTENSION (S.H. 190T-E) Limits: SH 78 to IH in Garland Status: Major Investment Study Scheduled to Begin in 1998 Comments: NCTCOG Requested by NTTA to Facilitate MIS I TRINITY PARKWAY WESTFORK Limits: Trinity Parkway in Dallas to SH 121 in Fort Worth Status: Major Investment Study Scheduled to Begin in 1998 Comments: MIS from Trinity Parkway to SH 360 to be Conducted by TxDOT in Conjunction with SH 183 MIS J INTERSTATE HIGHWAY (STEMMONS FREEWAY) HIGH OCCUPANCY TOLL LANES Limits: FM 407 in Lewisville to IH 635 in Dallas Status: Major Investment Study Scheduled to Begin in 1998 Comments: TxDOT/DART to Study Jointly K DFW EAST-WEST CONNECTOR Limits: SH 360 in Euless to SH 161 in Irving Status: Under Review as a Potential Toll Road Extension Comments: DFW Airport is Examining Facility as Part of New Airport Master Plan L LAKE LEWISVILLE BRIDGE Limits: From the Town of Shady Shores to FM 7 in Little Elm Status: Project will be Included in the IH MIS to be Conducted in 1998 Comments: Feasibility of Toll Bridge to be Considered M DALLAS NORTH TOLL ROAD EXTENSION Limits: SH 121 in Plano to US 380 in Collin County Status: Major Investment Study Required Comments: Frontage Roads Under Construction to Provide Interim Accessibility in the Corridor 5
Managed HOV/Integrated Toll Roads Mobility : The Metropolitan Transportation Plan recommends that high occupancy vehicle lanes be integrated with toll roads as a strategy for managing congestion. The Mobility roadway system recommendations include combinations of improvements to existing freeways, new freeways, and toll roads, and new high occupancy vehicle lanes. In several toll road corridors, the amount of traffic projected to use these facilities also warrants consideration of HOV lanes as a means of moving more commuters in the corridor. User fees on toll roads serve to limit traffic resulting in higher levels of service and higher speeds. HOV lanes are utilized when the adjacent freeway lanes are congested, thereby providing a higher level of service through a travel time advantage. In order to accommodate the significant demand of HOVs on future toll facilities, a combined management approach is suggested. This new concept is referred to as a Managed HOV/Integrated Toll Road Facility. The map below illustrates the locations of proposed HOV lanes in Mobility. As shown in blue, the President George Bush Turnpike and S.H. 161 are being considered for this strategy. Unlike traditional HOV facilities where HOV-only lanes are provided throughout the corridor, HOVs in this case are only provided with a bypass area at toll plazas. Vehicle occupancy will be verified and a toll charged using automatic vehicle identification (AVI) technology at these locations. Candidate incentives for the HOV participants would include a reduced toll per vehicle versus that of a single occupant vehicle, reduced toll per person, and potential time savings associated with the toll plaza bypass. A properly operated facility will provide relatively congestion-free travel using this Managed HOV/ Integrated Toll Road concept. The HOV lane travel time incentive associated with freeway HOV facilities would not be needed as the regular toll lanes are expected to operate at levels of service similar to traditional HOV lanes. The managed HOV/toll road concept would support the goals of generating revenue, increasing vehicle occupancies, and encouraging carpools and vanpools. By using the combination of variable pricing, design accommodations at toll barriers for HOVs, and automated vehicle identification technology, the available toll road capacity can be managed to maximize the movement of persons in each corridor. MOBILITY HOV SYSTEM Managed HOV/Integrated Toll Roads North Central Texas Council of Governments Transportation 75 REVERSIBLE HOV FACILITIES 121 A.M. PEAK PERIOD DIRECTION TWO-WAY HOV FACILITIES 114 MANAGED HOV/ INTEGRATED TOLL ROAD Arrows represent the direction of travel during the morning peak period. Direction of travel is reversed during the afternoon peak period on these HOV facilities Right-of-way preservation should be encouraged in all freeway corridors to accommodate potential future HOV facilities 8 170 Pending 121/114 MIS Trinity Parkway Pending 190 MIS 161 183 I.H. 635 MIS LPA Dallas North Tollway 635 190 80 New facility locations indicate transportation needs and do not represent specific alignments MOBILITY Express Lane System 75 161 Pending Trinity MIS 175 360 2 LANE REVERSIBLE HOV/ OFF-PEAK EXPRESS LANES 3+3 LANE HOV/TOLL LANES/ OFF-PEAK EXPRESS LANES I.H. 635 MIS LPA 287 67 45 635 183 80 Pending Trinity MIS 67 175 287 45 6
NCTCOG Executive Board 1997-98 President Elzie Odom Mayor, City of Arlington Vice President Ron Harmon Commissioner, Johnson County Secretary-Treasurer Ron Harris County Judge, Collin County Past President Jim Jackson Commissioner, Dallas County Tom Vandergriff County Judge, Tarrant County Mary Poss Mayor Pro Tem, City of Dallas Morris Parrish Mayor, City of Irving Bobbie Mitchell Mayor, City of Lewisville Becky Haskin Councilmember, City of Fort Worth Regional Citizen Representative (non-metro) Beatrice Butler Kaufman County Regional Citizen Representative (urban) Frank Longoria Dallas County General Counsel Jerry Gilmore Attorney at Law, Dallas Executive R. Michael Eastland Regional Transportation Council 1998 Chairman Jack Miller Mayor, City of Denton Vice Chairman Ron Harmon Commissioner, Johnson County Secretary John Murphy Mayor Pro Tem, City of Richardson Dick Bode Councilmember, City of Plano Ron Brown Commissioner, Ellis County Tommy Brown Mayor, City of North Richland Hills Don Doty Councilmember, City of Grand Prairie Milburn Gravley Mayor, City of Carrollton Sandy Greyson Councilmember, City of Dallas Becky Haskin Councilmember, City of Fort Worth Jack Hatchell Commissioner, Collin County Charles W. Heald District Engineer, Texas Department of Transportation, Fort Worth District John Heiman, Jr. Councilmember, City of Mesquite Alice Holland Board Member, Fort Worth Transportation Authority Lee Jackson County Judge, Dallas County Sandy Jacobs Commissioner, Denton County Larry Lipscomb Mayor, Town of Flower Mound Dottie Lynn Mayor Pro Tem, City of Arlington Barbara Mallory Caraway Councilmember, City of Dallas Kenneth Mayfield Commissioner, Dallas County James McCarley Acting Exec. Dir., North Texas Tollway Authority Eugene McCray Councilmember, City of Fort Worth Jay Nelson District Engineer, Texas Department of Transportation, Dallas District Robert Pope Board Member, Dallas Area Rapid Transit Mary Poss Mayor Pro Tem, City of Dallas Candy Sheehan Mayor, City of Coppell Jim Spence Mayor Pro Tem, City of Garland Joe Tillotson Mayor, City of Lancaster Marti VanRavenswaay Commissioner, Tarrant County Max Wells Citizen Representative, City of Dallas B. Glen Whitley Commissioner, Tarrant County Henry Wilson Councilmember, City of Hurst Jewel Woods Citizen Representative, City of Fort Worth Air Transportation Technical Advisory Committee Robert Porter, Chairman Airport Manager, City of Arlington Surface Transportation Technical Committee Wallace Ewell, P.E., Chairman of Transportation Operations TxDOT, Fort Worth District Travel Demand Management Committee Cliff Franklin, Chairman Mobility Coordinator North Central Mobility Task Force NCTCOG Contributing Staff Michael Morris of Transportation Dan Kessler Assistant of Transportation Mike Copeland Principal Transportation Planner Jacqueline Bell Administrative Assistant II Vickie Alexander Administrative Coordinator Biatriz Chapa Graphics Specialist, Public Affairs 7
Regional Mobility Initiatives Issues Advanced Transportation Management, March 1996 Air Quality, July 1996 Traffic Congestion, October 1996 Multimodal Solutions in the North Central Corridor, July 1997 Toll Roads, February 1998 The contents of this report reflect the views of the authors who are responsible for the opinions, findings, and conclusions presented herein. The contents do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Federal Highway Administration, the Federal Transit Administration, or the Texas Department of Transportation. This document was prepared in cooperation with the Texas Department of Transportation and the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration and Federal Transit Administration. What Is NCTCOG? The North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) is a voluntary association of local governments within the 16-county North Central Texas region. The agency was established in 1966 to assist local governments in planning for common needs, cooperating for mutual benefit, and coordinating for sound regional development. North Central Texas is a 16-county region with a population of 4.6 million and an area of approximately 12,800 square miles. NCTCOG has 227 member governments, including all 16 counties, 161 cities, 26 independent school districts, and 24 special districts. Since 1974, NCTCOG has served as the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for transportation in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area. The Regional Transportation Council is the policy body for the Metropolitan Planning Organization. The Regional Transportation Council consists of 37 members, predominantly local elected officials, overseeing the regional transportation planning process. NCTCOG s Department of Transportation is responsible for support and staff assistance to the Regional Transportation Council and its technical committees, which comprise the MPO policy-making structure. We would like your comments... If you have questions or comments regarding the transportation and air quality programs of the North Central Texas Council of Governments and the Regional Transportation Council or need additional information, please contact the NCTCOG Transportation Department at (817) 695-9240, by fax at (817) 640-28 or via e-mail: transinfo@nctcog.dst.tx.us North Central Texas Council of Governments P. O. Box 5888 Arlington, Texas 76005-5888