A proposed tolled link between Interstate 10 in Duval County and Interstate 95 in St. Johns County received local support from a transportation group Thursday, putting the priority project a step closer to realization.
North Florida Transportation Planning Organization board members voted to approve a resolution that supports the department’s recommendation for Florida Turnpike Enterprise to construct the First Coast Outer Beltway as a toll facility.
The first segment of the project, Branan Field-Chaffee Road from I-10 to Blanding Boulevard in Clay County, will be split into two sections.
“If you direct us today by passing the resolution, we are ready to go forward and invest $230 million in construction projects and get this economy going and this region going,” FDOT Secretary Ananth Prasad said before the vote.
He warned the board that not approving the resolution would mean an end to funding for the beltway, a project estimated to cost a total of $1.8 billion.
“I have $30 billion in unfunded needs in this state. I cannot keep spending millions of dollars on corridors where nobody wants corridors to be built. I’ve got other places, many projects, many communities who are more than willing to have us come down and make infrastructure improvements,” said Prasad.
The North Florida TPO is the independent regional transportation planning agency for Duval County and major parts of Clay, Nassau and St. Johns counties. Its board consists of elected officials from those counties and transportation agency representatives.
The board listened to public comment from 13 of about 100 people gathered at the FDOT training center on Edison Road.
All but one commenter was in favor of the Beltway for economic development opportunities. The commenter who opposed was concerned about the feeder roads near the toll road and if they were capable of handling traffic created by people avoiding the toll road.
Public comments were followed by discussion among board members and a unanimous vote to approve the resolution.
“From what I’ve heard from the board, this project lends itself to regional economic benefit, jobs, safety and it gives citizen drivers a choice traveling in this region,” said Danny Leeper, North Florida TPO chairman and Nassau County commissioner.
“Secretary Prasad, District Secretary (Greg) Evans, I think by our actions today we’ve given you our support and we are ready for you to put people to work,” Leeper said following the vote.
FDOT reported that the project will create about 65,000 long-term jobs.
It will begin the first section of the project, from I-10 to 1 mile north of Argyle Forest Boulevard, by advertising the design-build contract in September. The department plans for construction to begin on the section in March 2013.
The design-build contract will be advertised for the second section, from 1 mile north of Argyle Forest Boulevard to Blanding Boulevard, in April 2013 with construction expected to begin in September 2013.
The project will be funded by the Florida Turnpike Enterprise and funds will be recaptured through tolls. Those tolls will be collected using SunPass, an electronic tolling system that eliminates toll booths and sends a bill through the mail to those without the equipment.
While the public has shown an aversion to paying tolls, James Bennett, FDOT District Two urban development manager, reported that since tolls were removed from Jacksonville roads in 1988 by voter referendum, the FDOT has spent $216 million for improvements to the Fuller Warren, Hart, Mathews and Trout River bridges and part of the widening of Butler Boulevard to six lanes.
The improvements were paid for by the half-cent sales tax created to replace toll funding. Prasad explained that the sales tax is not sufficient to meet infrastructure needs and suggested that it be repealed.
“My position is to get rid of the sales tax. It is not a sustainable funding source. Going forward it has to be user-financed. We pay for water based on how many gallons we use. Why do we pay for infrastructure based on how many jeans we buy? We should pay for how many miles we drive,” said Prasad.
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