Replace Outer Beltway with New Link To Gainesville, I-75, Tampa

[tufsu1]

Tufsu, so how will interchange costs be allocated between the Beltway and the taxpayer owners of the connecting roads?  If, as you say, the Beltway is truly not at expense to taxpayers, ALL interchange costs should be paid by the Beltway operator since there would be no interchange without the Beltway.[/b]

yes...all interchanges to existing roads will be built with the beltway...where future roads are planned, the ROW for the interchanges will be acquired and most likely overpasses built w/ the beltway.

Check out the Suncoast Pkwy in Pasco County (Ridge Rd overpass) for an example

[tufsu1]

Lake, your sample interchange highlights another issue and expense.  This interchange is typical of the built "on the cheap" diamond intersections favored by FDOT and JTA, complete with traffic congesting traffic lights.

actually the example Lake showed is of a single point urban interchnage (SPUI)...these are actually more expensive than typical diamond interchanges to construct, but take up less ROW and are more efficient as all movements converge on one traffic signal.

Many of the Southside, Beach, and 9A interchanges in Jax. are this type.

[stjr]

^Tufsu, nonetheless, still with traffic lights and a lot cheaper than a full interchange without need for lights.  Again, how are interchanges paid for, now and when they need to be upgraded later?

[tufsu1]

^Tufsu, nonetheless, still with traffic lights and a lot cheaper than a full interchange without need for lights.  Again, how are interchanges paid for, now and when they need to be upgraded later?

as things stand now, interchanges are most often funded by the public through gas taxes....of course there are examples (St. Augustine Rd and IGP) of interchanges that are funded by other sources.

in the Outer Beltway, the interchanges would be funded up front by the operator...my guess is that future improvements to those interchanges that affect the ramps would be done by the road operator (as the other toll roads in the state are)....improvements to the "intersecting" roadways would be the responsibility of someone else.

[CS Foltz]

Gentlemen............I keep coming back to WTF? Why is not FDOT operating in a manner that is conducive to overall sprawl inhibiting? Roads, just for the sake of roads, seems to me, IMHO, just concrete, concrete and more concrete! There does not appear to any Department anywhere which takes this into consideration.....I would rather enhance what we have before we start building anew more roads...........what the heck happened to a mass transit system that would start taking the place of roads? For what we spend on interchanges and crossings we could have something world class but we seem more inclinced to put down more asphalt which I don't think is the long term answer!

[stjr]

Just to keep this thread current, posting this article below.  Also, see thread on this article at: http://www.metrojacksonville.com/forum/index.php/topic,7991.msg140615/topicseen.html#new

Crist says Beltway moving forward in campaign-style speech
Posted: March 25, 2010 - 6:51pm

By Larry Hannan

Charlie Crist has been popular for much of his political career.

But on Wednesday, Florida's governor - in danger of being rejected by his own political party - got applause in Jacksonville for promising something most people hate: road construction.

In an address that sounded more like a campaign speech than a construction announcement, Crist said work on the First Coast Outer Beltway from Interstate 10 in Duval County to Interstate 95 in St. Johns County will be expedited. The state will begin meeting with private contractors next month to solicit bids on the $1.8 billion project.

The state hopes a private contractor will build the roadway and recoup the money through tolls, creating the first Northeast Florida toll road in a generation.

Although Crist said it was too early to determine when construction might begin, he touted the Outer Beltway as an innovative public-private project that was needed in a down economy.

"This is a chance for government to reach out to the free enterprise system and encourage innovation," he said.
Having drawn the ire of the some Republicans for his support for the federal stimulus, the governor made the announcement in front of a new overpass being built at Plantation Oaks Boulevard over Branan Field Road at the border between Clay and Duval counties.

The $8.2 million project is being paid for with federal stimulus money.

Recent polls have Crist trailing former House Speaker Marco Rubio in the Republican U.S. Senate primary by 20 points or more. GOP activists have blasted the governor for not being conservative enough.

During the construction announcement, and another speech earlier in the day to the Clay County Chamber of Commerce, Crist repeatedly referred to himself as a conservative who idolized Ronald Reagan and believed in getting government off of people's backs.

He also touted the fact the economy has gotten better and urged a Times-Union reporter to mention that homes sales are increasing in Florida.

The Outer Beltway is a model of his philosophy, Crist said, because government is "empowering" the private sector to do something.

However, it remains unclear if a private company exists that wants to pay $1.8 billion. The state lacks the money to build the road itself.

State Transportation Secretary Stephanie Kopelousos said companies would find the project attractive. She couldn't say to who might be interested until the state started talking to individual companies.

Clay Commission Chairman Travis Cummings said the road would bring economic development to the region and praised the decision to build it as a public-private partnership.

"In a better economic climate the approaches of the past might have worked," he said. "But right now we need innovation."

http://jacksonville.com/news/florida/2010-03-25/story/crist-says-beltway-moving-forward-campaign-style-speech

[stjr]

Although Crist said it was too early to determine when construction might begin, he touted the Outer Beltway as an innovative public-private project that was needed in a down economy.

Did it ever to occur to Charlie that by the time this baby gets going, the economy may have already bounced back?  What would he say the reason for building it then would be?

State Transportation Secretary Stephanie Kopelousos said companies would find the project attractive. She couldn't say to who might be interested until the state started talking to individual companies.

Great example of political double talk that says nothing.  She's so sure but she hasn't even spoken to anyone who might know?  Dream, baby, dream.

Clay Commission Chairman Travis Cummings said the road would bring economic development to the region and praised the decision to build it as a public-private partnership.

Economic development.  Urban sprawl.  Be careful what you wish for.

[urbanlibertarian]

"Did it ever to occur to Charlie that by the time this baby gets going, the economy may have already bounced back?  What would he say the reason for building it then would be?"

Isn't this the case for almost all stimulus programs Rep or Dem?  Doing nothing allows the economy to bounce back faster on it's own.

[ricker]

As many may deduce, and as has been published regarding this reason for this staggering harbinger of wreckless corruption -- evacuation route.