Cintra
Opinion: Bankruptcy just part of the plan
OPINION. By Nils Lucander. What does it mean to North Carolina taxpayers when Cintra (Ferrovial) bankrupts one of its subsidiaries elsewhere? When Cintra’s various LLCs—like the ones in Texas, Indiana, Spain, Virginia and North Carolina—file bankruptcy on these highway projects, it is not due to some unforeseen, unusual, tragic circumstances that we might empathize with […]
Jeter’s I-77 summit will bring top decision-makers together soon
UPDATED 6:40 pm Nov. 9. NC Rep. Charles Jeter will convene an I-77 summit within the next 10 business days to hash out ways to fix the controversial toll plan. The divisive issue led to resounding defeats on Election Day to officials like Mayor Jill Swain and Commissioner Sarah McAulay in Huntersville. Jeter said that “in direct […]
I-77 Mobility Partners say work would occur at night
By Dave Vieser. If the I-77 toll lane project actually gets under way, an article in the Charlotte Observer in August 2014 said it would begin this past spring or summer, motorists and truckers will be dealing with three years of work on Lake Norman’s main north-south expressway. The only redeeming factor is that work which […]
Javier Tamargo: ‘Indiana Toll Road bankruptcy has proved the resounding success of the public-private partnership model’
Aug. 20. By Dave Yochum. ANALYSIS. The I-77 toll battle just got more interesting. And a little humorous. WidenI-77 founder Kurt Naas, a Cornelius resident, has challenged the head of I-77 Mobility Partners, the newly created Cintra unit that will build and run the toll lanes, to a debate. “In the interest of informing the […]
Cintra hints of possible legal action against critic of toll plan
By Dave Yochum. The fight against the plan to widen I-77 with the help of a company whose roots are in Spain continues to escalate, with a lawsuit, another bill in Raleigh and even the threat of legal action against someone who has spoken out against I-77 Mobility partners, the new entity that will build the […]
Point counterpoint: I-77 toll lanes
By Kurt Naas. Now that local governments and businesses have lined up against the I-77 toll lanes, the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) has been offering up three more rationales why they must move forward with this project. First, we’ve been told it’s “tolls or nothing for 20 years.” That may have been true in […]
LKN business leaders bus to Raleigh Tuesday to oppose toll plan
June 29. Lake Norman-area business leaders, ranging from bankers and racing executives to commercial real estate brokers and manufacturers, will travel by bus to the North Carolina State Capitol tomorrow to visibly join the fight against the public-private partnership that would widen I-77 with toll lanes. “I intend to call out that the NCDOT has […]
Lettter to the Editor
OPINION. Robert Poole of the Reason Foundation introduced California and the United States to his concept of managed lanes as a way to address congestion in urban centers like Los Angeles. The links (after signature block) to LA Times articles from 2013 and 2015 offer an update on how that is progressing. If you read […]
LKN Chamber will come out against toll lanes
June 23. By Dave Yochum. The Lake Norman Chamber of Commerce will officially come out against the plan to widen I-77 with toll lanes and a 50-year contract with a company whose roots are in Spain. The chamber’s resolution, passed by its board of directors last night, requests that the contract with I-77 Mobility Partners be […]
OPINION: It’s time to back Widen I-77 and fight the tolls
It’s been an interesting news period these past few months. The I-77 toll battle has turned into a full-fledged citizen movement with the business community climbing on in earnest in May, thanks in large part to John “Mac” McAlpine V, a racing industry engineer in Cornelius. (Yes, his family is the McAlpine in the McAlpine […]
