Tuesday, February 26, 2008

TXDOT LA ENTRADA STUDY OVERVIEW

The following info is from the TXDOT website and may
shed some more light on what the meetings are about.
Pat K.

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La Entrada al Pacifico Corridor Study Overview

Background

The purpose of the La Entrada al Pacifico Corridor is to increase the efficiency of transportation of goods and people from Pacific Coast ports in Mexico northeast to Midland-Odessa, Texas. Mexican ports, such as the Port of Topolobampo, are potentially viable alternatives to the congested ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Additionally, the underutilized border crossing at Presidio, Texas, is an opportunity to divert traffic from the already overburdened crossing at El Paso, Texas.

The La Entrada al Pacifico Corridor is defined by House Bill 2115, 1997 Texas Legislature, and was signed into law by then Governor George W. Bush in 1997. It was also named Corridor 56 in Section 1304, High Priority Corridors on the National Highway System, in the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act, or SAFETEA-LU.

Goals

The goals for the La Entrada al Pacifico Corridor Feasibility Study are to:
determine the feasibility of a four-lane divided facility (TxDOT Trunk System Standard, a planned rural, four-lane divided highway network of 10,500 miles that includes and complements Texas’ rural interstate highways) within the designated national corridor, as well as any other corridors identified through the public involvement process,
identify and prioritize potential roadway improvement alternatives along the nationally designated corridor, if a four-lane divided facility is not feasible,
evaluate the economic impacts of future connections and improvements to the infrastructure in Mexico
identify financial and institutional issues related to the development and construction of the corridor, and
provide public involvement through an outreach program and public meetings.
Considerations

Issues to be considered for this study include:
the effects of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) on projected travel demand along the corridor,
the consequences of port improvements along the Mexican Pacific Coast to determine the impacts for the corridor,
the impact of existing and planned infrastructure in northwestern Mexico on the corridor,
the upgrade of US 67 to meet Texas Trunk System Standards, which would make it become a four-lane divided highway with two lanes in each direction, and
most importantly, the safety of future travelers.
Considerations such as these will ensure the success of the La Entrada al Pacifico Corridor. For example, a parallel Mexican study determined the corridor, as currently designated, could reduce a one-way trip by 134 miles from Chihuahua, Mexico, to Dallas, Texas, by diverting freight traffic away from the current routes through Ciudad Juarez and El Paso. It also indicated a time savings of about six hours, including driving and border crossing.

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