Category Archives: State Politics
Let’s Gather Together Again
A year ago the citizens of this region joined together and met on the Exit 28 bridge in an unprecedented show of solidarity. At the time not a single town or county board was on record as being against the toll project. We’ve come a long ways. In light of that one year anniversary, we’re
A Message for Today
So a lot of people have been asking what’s up with the fight on I-77 tolls. If you’ve followed the news recently you know our cause has been put on hold because we are suddenly faced with an existential threat. Not since General Beauregard loosed his cannons on Ft Sumter has the South faced a
NCDOT Heading to TX to Investigate Latest Cintra Bankruptcy
NCDOT issued the following press release today: NCDOT Statement on SH 130 Tollway Bankruptcy in Texas Raleigh – “Late today, we were notified of the bankruptcy filing in Texas. The governor has directed us to immediately review every available option – both legal and financial – to reassess the I-77 Mobility Partner’s business model and current contract.
“By the Numbers” Pt 2: Cintra’s Annual Toll Revenues
Part Two of a four-part series analyzing Cintra’s and NCDOT’s public claims using their own numbers. In Part One we discussed Cintra’s projected toll rates. In this installment, we’ll look at how that translates into annual toll revenues. Fully Ramped Revenues Top $30M The chart below shows Cintra’s estimate for annual toll revenues for the
Justice Department Investigating Cintra
Widen I-77 recently obtained a copy of an Investigative Demand of the NC Department of Justice to I-77 Mobility Partners, the wholly owned subsidiary of Cintra. An investigative demand is an order from a law enforcement agency requiring the requestee to produce materials as part of a legal investigation. The demand was sent on Dec
New Penalty Estimate: Cintra’s Dream Scenario
Early last week, NCDOT released an analysis of the cancellation penalties. Unfortunately, the headlines have dutifully blared the cancellation penalty could be as high as $300M. Like so many other “independent analyses”, a look past the headline yields a different result. Consultant’s Independence Questionable The analysis was performed by Clary Consulting, headed by a Mr. Lowell
UPDATE 1/7 Widen I-77 Files Motion to Stay
UPDATE: Judge Smith will hear our Motion to Stay as the first order of business tomorrow. PLEASE KEEP YOUR PLANS TO BE IN COURT TOMORROW. Same time and place. If the motion is denied, oral arguments will proceed as originally scheduled. Mecklenburg County Courthouse 832 East Fourth Street Charlotte, NC Courtroom 6170 10am, January 8,
NCDOT’s Rebuttal
As required by the schedule set by the court, today NCDOT filed their brief in opposition to our motion for summary judgment. You can download it here: 15 CVS 1076 – State Defendants Response-Reply One thing that really caught our attention: Remember the “Toll Summit” that was held in Cornelius last month? In order to
Writing the intent of the law out of the contract
Let’s say you make $91K per year. You’ve just ticked over into the 28% income tax bracket and you’ve got to mail the IRS a hefty check. But all of a sudden the IRS does you a huge favor: they raise the tax bracket. In fact, they raise it by a factor of a thousand.
Help Eliminate the Governor’s Excuse
Now that the LKN towns, counties and businesses have voiced their opposition to the I-77 toll plan, Governor McCrory and NCDOT’s insistence on the project hangs off a single excuse: two years ago the regional planning board (Charlotte Regional Transportation Planning Organization) voted for tolls. Through the end of July you can help eliminate that
