Category Archives: Uncategorized
Appeals Courts Decision
Today the North Carolina Appeals Court provided their written opinion on our lawsuit. In summary, the court found that: (1) delegating the unfettered right to set tolls to a private company on public infrastructure is an appropriate delegation of authority; (2) 50 years of private tolling serves a public purpose; (3) the project does not
Rally at the Bridge this Friday!
Yes, the toll lanes are under construction but the efforts to terminate the contract continue on multiple fronts. The decision on Widen I-77’s lawsuit appeal is scheduled for next month. The contract is undergoing two independent reviews, and elected leaders everywhere realize tolls are a losing issue. This Friday marks the third year we have
Safety to the Wind Part II
These photographs were taken on I-77 near exit 30. Apparently Cintra forgot to secure a plastic barrier and today’s high winds blew the material onto the interstate.
Throwing Safety to the Wind?
Yes, we’re hopelessly biased against this project, but let’s be honest: have you ever seen an interstate construction site look like this? The above photo was taken the Monday morning near exit 25. the dust cloud looked like this: And this: But should this be surprising? Despite a lane shift and narrowing lanes, the
Oral Arguments to be heard Feb 8 in Raleigh
The North Carolina Appeals court will hear oral arguments at 9:30am, February 8 in Raleigh. We do not know when a decision will be rendered.
Cooper Appoints Pro-Toll Transpo Secretary
One of the things about a new administration is that it promises a fresh start. New faces, new beginnings. Unfortunately that may not be the case with Governor Cooper’s new Secretary of Transportation. Yesterday Cooper announced he had appointed Jim Trogdon as the new Secretary of Transportation. While Trogdon may be new to the position,
Caution! Road “Constriction” Ahead…
No, that headline is not a typo. If you have the ill fortune of driving over the causeways recently, you probably noticed construction of the toll lanes has begun there as well. Adding two toll lanes (one each way) plus buffers and shoulders is pretty tight fight. How will Cintra accomplish this? Well, if you
Bonus Allocation Bungle?
Toll advocates have used the “bonus allocation” millions as a justification for the I-77 toll project…but it turns out there’s a catch. Actually, two catches. In 2013 the NC legislature passed the Strategic Transportation Initiative (STI) which revamped how transportation dollars are allocated. One provision is a “bonus allocation” clause that provides additional funds if
DOT: Cintra has spent $107M so far
Fresh on the heels of an infuriating trip by mayors gone rogue comes more disturbing evidence of an agency gone rogue. On June 7th, the day before Mayors Woods and Travis snuck off to Raleigh, the Fiscal Research Division released their report on the fiscal impact of HB954. FRD is roughly analogous to the Congressional
Friendly Fire
We’ve sent emails. We’ve made phone calls. What we forgot to do was watch our back. Yesterday Mayors John Woods and Chuck Travis met with Senator/Pres Pro Tem Phil Berger in Raleigh. And they shot us in the back. According to one attendee, the Mayors impressed upon Senator Berger the fact that those opposing the
