San Antonio is the last major city in Texas without toll roads. Toll roads have been examined and reexamined in the city, as Interstate 10 and U.S. Highway 281 have become increasingly congested.
Local efforts to stymie toll lanes have been vocal. The passage of Proposition 7 on last November's ballot quashed the idea of 281 toll lanes, alleviating the funding need to expand the popular highway north of Loop 1604.
Using a sizeable portion of the first Prop 7 monies for a single project on Highway 281 could mean other projects have to wait. Delayed and unfunded projects continue to be a large issue for the Texas Department of Transportation.
High Occupancy Vehicle lanes are currently still part of the plan for the expansion of these roads. And a $53 million shortfall came up at a recent council briefing on the I-10 expansion, begging the question, are tolls still on the table?
The Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization has a number of upcoming public meetings in the next two weeks: Wednesday, Feb.24, from 6-8 p.m. at the VIA Metro Community Room, 1021 San Pedro Ave, San Antonio, TX. Thursday Feb.25, from 6-8 p.m. at the Leon Valley Conference Center, 6421 Evers Rd, Leon Valley, TX.
Guests:
- Ray Lopez, Councilman for District 6, Chairman of the Alamo MPO
- Mario Jorge, district engineer for TxDOT
