A toll project that is the result of a public-private partnership (P3/PPP) in Texas is getting a little help from the federal government. U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx recently announced that the private company that will build and operate the tollway as part of the State Highway 288 project in Houston has been awarded a $357 million Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan. The loan will help finance construction of four new toll lanes on the highway. The private firm will repay the loan through toll revenue and will build, operate and maintain the project through 2068.
Image by Lindsay Kinkade licensed under CC BY 2.0.
Foxx explained that the TIFIA program is designed to assist local communities in seeing necessary transportation infrastructure projects to fruition. Without this loan through the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the project likely would not have gotten started for years.
Houston traffic ranks the city among the most congested metro areas in the country. Foxx said the addition of the four toll lanes will help mitigate some of that congestion and provide a safer, quicker commute for motorists to access jobs and community services in the community.
The TIFIA-financed loan will assist the project that will build new toll lanes as part of the $857 million project including more than 10 miles between U.S. 59 and the Harris County line. It will also include direct ramps to the Texas Medical Center, a new interchange with the Sam Houston Tollway and upgraded interchanges on Loop 610.