Transportation industry

The Illinois State Toll Highway Authority is highlighting to investors its double-A ratings and fiscal strength as it prices a $400 million deal against a backdrop of two recent downgrades to Illinois state general obligation bonds.

House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee leaders have introduced a bill that would extend transportation funding through Dec. 4 to give House and Senate conferees time to negotiate a multiyear measure.

The Wyoming Department of Transportation says it needs an additional $62 million per year to maintain its roads and bridges, even as a recent report concludes that the state faces a sharp drop in revenue due to a weak oil and gas market.

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority has opened its first new regional station in nearly 20 years as part of a public private partnership.

New York MTA plans $700 million of new-money transportation revenue bond anticipation notes and a $43.8 million remarketing next month, said finance manager Patrick McCoy.

A consortium of Canadian pension funds will take over the lease rights to the Chicago Skyway toll road for $2.8 billion.

Federal, state and New York City officials met with MTA Chairman Thomas Prendergast to discuss how to fast-track Second Avenue subway line extension to Harlem.

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe plans to ask lawmakers for approval to issue up to $3.5 billion of bonds for capital needs, including transportation projects.

New York and New Jersey announced a deal to allow a long-stalled Amtrak tail runnel project between New York and New Jersey to move full steam ahead.

The Federal Transit Administration estimates that more than $131 billion will be needed for transit systems in poor and marginal condition, including almost $86 billion to replace infrastructure that has already exceeded its useful life, Moody’s Investment Service said in a report issued on Thursday.

Maryland gets $27.9 million grant to study a 40-mile magnetic levitation train route expected to cost $10 billion.

Michigan’s recent adoption of a $1.2 billion road funding package was labeled a positive credit factor for the state’s transportation revenue bonds by Moody’s Investors Service.

Missouri has turned east to New Hampshire for a new head of transportation.

On the eve of pricing $1.75 billion of bonds for a privately owned intercity passenger train system, its Florida developers introduced Brightline as the name of the new service.

Tennessee’s cash-funded transportation system fails to keep pace with billions in backlogged needs, and residents must decide how to tackle the problem, Gov. Bill Haslam said Monday.

Oklahoma system will finance almost $900 million of turnpike projects with toll revenue bonds rather than state tax revenues.

Massachusetts has completed a $500 million sale of Commonwealth Transportation Fund revenue bonds to help fund six new rail projects in the Bay State.

Voters in eight states approved 26 of 37 transportation funding proposals on Nov. 3 ballots.

The House adopted a six-year, $325 billion transportation funding measure that must be reconciled by Nov. 20 with Senate's $342 billion plan.

A capital project to provide East Side access in New York to Long Island Rail Road trains is nearly 60% complete, said MTA official Michael Horodniceanu.