Senate considers bill to require tolls be removed once debts are paid; NTTA chairman says he's 'conflicted,' but insists NTTA must keep tolls on roads

What if Texas required that every toll road become a free road once tollpayers pay enough to retire the debt required to build the road in the first place? After all that's what happened on Interstate 30, which began as tolled highway and became a free one 24 years later when the state removed the tolls. On Wednesday, the Senate transportation committee took testimony on a bill by Sen. Steve Ogden, R-Bryan, that would require toll roads to become free road once their bonds had paid off.

Lindenberger: http://dallasne.ws/hMSJkZ

Q&A with Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst; Sen. John Carona of Dallas calls Dewhurst a 'statesman' but warns efforts may be futile

Lindenberger:

Last Tuesday, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst (at right, courtesy of the AP) sat down for an interview in his grand, second-floor office in the Capitol. It was a few hours after he had taken the oath of office for a third term for what many say is at least the second most powerful office in Texas, and some argue, given its role in leading the Senate, is the first. We have a page one story for Monday's paper about his ideas, and a full transcript of the chat is available on the jump below.
http://bit.ly/gxAbma

Today's page one story:

Lt.
Gov. David Dewhurst to push Texas lawmakers to consider fee hike to pay for
roads

http://bit.ly/ebharO

LaHood: President still opposed to gas tax increase

Lindenberger, this morning, in DMN's Transportation Blog:

In a speech in Houston Wednesday, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said Congress and the White House are largely in sync about what ought to be in the next big transportation reauthorization bill.
http://tinyurl.com/2wyse9q