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PRESS ADVISORY/REQUEST FOR COVERAGE
For Monday, September 14, 2015
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CONTACT:
Terri Hall,
Texans for Toll-free Highways and Texas TURF,
(210) 275-0640, terri@tollfreehighways.com
terri@texasturf.org
www.tollfreehighways.com and www.texasturf.org
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Anti-toll groups reject road diet for Hwy 281
Conversion of existing lane into HOV-bus lane shrinks capacity
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(San Antonio, TX - Friday, September 11, 2015) The Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (AAMPO) will be voting Monday, September 14 on a resolution to do the US 281 project (from Loop 1604 to the Bexar County line) without tolls. However, the new proposal still involves converting one existing, unrestricted freeway lane into an HOV-bus lane (a restricted lane), shrinking existing capacity open to all cars rather than expanding it. Where there are six general purpose (unrestricted) highway lanes today, there will only be four if the board approves it as proposed.
AAMPO votes Monday
WHO/WHAT: AAMPO Special Meeting on US 281 Corridor
WHEN: Monday, September 14 at 1:00 PM
WHERE: Via Metro Center, 1021 San Pedro, San Antonio, TX
"This should be great news. We're thrilled the tolls are coming off Hwy 281! But taking away existing, unrestricted lanes and turning them into restricted lanes that few commuters can access, shrinks our existing highway capacity and actually creates more congestion, despite the benefit of overpasses," notes Terri Hall, Founder/Director of Texas TURF and Texans for Toll-free Highways.
"This is social engineering designed to change behavior and force us out of our cars and into a carpool or a bus, which is impractical for the vast majority of commuters," Hall contends.
Via Metropolitan Transit is insisting on shrinking the highway capacity with its HOV-bus lane to incentivize commuters to get out of their cars and onto a bus (in order to support its new $15 million Park-n-Ride at the corner of Stone Oak & US 281). However, this bus/carpool lane is only for seven miles.
Hall asks, "Who would go to the trouble to take a seven-mile carpool or bus lane? The Park-n-Ride isn't until you get to Stone Oak Pkwy, so really, the benefit of the exclusive bus lane is only for three miles. You've heard of the bridge to nowhere - well, this is the lane to nowhere! It doesn't connect to any other HOV-bus lanes anywhere in San Antonio because there are none."
Hall insists the buses can utilize the new frontage roads. They do not need exclusive lanes to operate.
The AAMPO consultant from WSP-Parsons Brinkerhoff who gave a presentation to the board on August 28, admitted HOV lanes do not solve congestion. HOV lanes are persistently underutilized and most buses still run empty. Even with the exclusive lanes, buses still add to your overall commute time due to wait times and stops.
In a 2004, Pravin Varaiya, a professor at the University of California at Berkeley, did an academic study of HOV lanes and highway congestion which states: "An HOV lane suffers a 20% capacity loss compared with multi-lane freeways. HOV lanes are either under utilized or suffer degraded operations. HOV lanes do not measurably increase car pooling. HOV lanes do not reduce overall highway congestion."
Part of a 'road diet'
Mayor Ivy Taylor recently unveiled her vision for San Antonio a few weeks ago to the city council to put San Antonio on a 'road diet.' This is unprecedented to take any existing unrestricted lane and turn it into a restricted HOV-bus lane. Up until now, HOV lanes have been new lanes or special lanes utilizing the shoulders of medians. Never before has a lane open to all autos been converted into an HOV-bus lane.
If the plan moves forward, this HOV-bus lane would be the first installment of what will eventually be such lanes on every highway in San Antonio. The AAMPO board is spending $300,000 to study imposing HOV-transit-toll lanes across the Alamo city. But that will take decades. Meanwhile commuters will be stuck in congestion due to a forced scarcity of road capacity.
According to AAMPO documents, congestion weary commuters were promised an additional general purpose lane on US 281 since the late 1990s. Commuters desperately need the additional lane for the project to be successful in relieving congestion.
Speaker Joe Straus was instrumental in getting the tolls off US 281, so TURF and TTH supporters are asking for his help in securing the new, general purpose lane as was promised nearly 20 years ago.
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 TURF is a non-partisan, grassroots, all-volunteer group defending citizens' concerns with toll road policy, public private partnerships, and eminent domain abuse. TURF promotes pro-taxpayer, pro-freedom, & non-toll transportation solutions. For more information or to support the work of TURF, please visit www.TexasTURF.org. |  Texans for Toll-free Highways is a non-partisan political action committee also working to keep our highways toll-free. For more information or to support the work of TTH, please visit www.TollfreeHighways.com.
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Where applicable, a political advertisement paid for by
Texans for Toll-free Highways, PO Box 29254, San Antonio, TX 78229.
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