Transportation infrastructure contracting opportunities will be abundant in Texas over the next 10 years. The Texas Transportation Commission this week approved the largest transportation spending plan in the history of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) – $70 billion – by ratifying the 2017 Unified Transportation Program.
The $70 billion program will concentrate on capacity needs, transportation infrastructure maintenance and safety and will result in contracts for engineering, construction, professional services, environmental services and other transportation-related industry firms. Subcontracting opportunities will also be available for qualified firms.
The 2017 plan represents a significant increase in funding over the last such plan. Last year’s plan included a little over $33 million in spending, less than half of the amount in the 2017 plan. The increase in funding for the 2017 plan was made available in part by legislation that was approved by Texas voters that allocated additional tax money – from oil and gas taxes, sales taxes and other tax revenue – to the State Highway Fund. Those additional revenues will be supplemented by additional federal funding following passage of the long-term federal Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act). The FAST Act allocates more than $305 billion to the states during Fiscal Years 2016 through 2020.
Among the projects TxDOT officials say will be addressed in the 2017 spending plan are traffic congestion in highly populated areas of the state, efforts to better connect major interstates in rural areas with local roads and highways, road and highway construction and maintenance needs resulting from heavy use by energy sector motor vehicles and the enhancement and completion of interstate highways.
Private-sector firms interested in securing transportation infrastructure contracts should pay close attention to TxDOT announcements concerning these upcoming projects.