New P3 Toll Road Opens

California’s first privatized “greenfield” toll highway opens to traffic Monday. The South Bay Expressway is a 10-mile tollway through some of the eastern suburbs of San Diego.While California has seen privately built and operated toll lanes added to an existing freeway, and greenfield — or brand-new — toll highways built by government entities, the South Bay Expressway in San Diego County represents the first completely new toll route built by a public-private partnership.It’s been a long time coming. The California Department of Transportation awarded the concession to San Diego Expressway LP in 1991. Macquarie Infrastructure Group acquired 81.6% of the partnership in 2002, and brought its ownership share to 100% in 2003.In 2006, MIG transferred 50% of its San Diego tollway concession to Macquarie Infrastructure Partners, a New York-headquartered fund created to focus on “infrastructure and infrastructure-like investments in North America,” according to the firm. The 35-year concession agreement gives the tollway partnership complete authority to set tolls for the highway.The initial toll for the full 10-mile, one-way trip will be $3.75, though tolling will not begin immediately for everyone — motorists who sign up for electronic transponders will be able to use the highway free until mid-January. According to Macquarie, financing for the highway includes an equity contribution between $160 million and $180 million, $321 million of senior debt, and $154 million in funding from a federal loan through the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act program.