A team of private companies led by Spanish toll firm Cinta has secured its financing for the mega toll project known as the North Tarrant Express. The toll project will rebuild existing lanes along Interstate 820 and portions of SH 183, and add new managed lanes as well.(A map of the project is here.)

Construction should begin in late 2010, and it will be the first privately financed toll road in North Texas. A similar project, also led by Cintra, to rebuild LBJ Freeway with a mix of free and paid lanes is expected to begin construction shortly afterward.

The managed lanes on both projects will be costly during rush hours, with rates going up as the traffic on the adjacent free lanes gets heavier. It's an approach to "manage" traffic by continuing to jack up rates when demand is strong, and by doing so keeping traffic moving freely on the paid lanes no matter how slow it becomes on the free lanes.

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Posted by claire at December 17, 2009 7:41 AM