Transportation industry

DALLAS — Two years after sharply retrenching in a harsh economy, Dallas Area Rapid Transit is enjoying a lift in its credit score from Fitch Ratings along with rising sales tax revenue and lower construction costs.

BRADENTON, Fla. — A libertarian think tank is disputing the savings that might occur if two high-profile Florida expressway authorities are partially consolidated with the state-run Turnpike Enterprise.

The Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority will offer a mandatory tender and purchase Tuesday of all three outstanding series of its variable-rate general revenue bonds, Series 2003 and 2005, totaling about $535 million.

Houston last week broke ground on a $1 billion bond-financed redevelopment of George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

Robert Shepard has resigned as the governor-appointed director of the North Texas Tollway Authority’s board. Shepard’s resignation comes as the board faces a probe into it past business practices by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, but his departure is said not to be related to that inquiry.

The effort by the Kansas City suburb of Mission to tax residents for roadwork is illegal and cannot be collected, Attorney General Derek Schmidt said last week in a non-binding opinion.

Roads and streets in every city and all 75 counties of Arkansas would be improved and upgraded with revenue from a proposed 0.5% increase in the state sales tax, highway director Scott Bennett told lawmakers last week.

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority doesn't plan to issue bonds this year because it is securing a $546 million federal loan to help fund the $1.74 billion Crenshaw Line light-rail project.

The tug of war between Los Angeles World Airports and Ontario city officials over control of LA/Ontario International Airport has picked up steam over the past few weeks, but the issue appears unlikely to be resolved any time soon.

A day after Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood stunned the transportation community by saying it is "highly unlikely" Congress will pass a long-term reauthorization bill to fund highway and transit programs this year, lawmakers and industry lobbyists vowed to keep pushing for such legislation despite considerable obstacles.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority may get needed relief from New York State for high borrowing fees connected with refunding bond sales, its executive director said Wednesday.

Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear is proposing to fund his state's half of the massive $2.6 billion Ohio River Bridges Project with federal funds and toll revenue bonds over the next six years.

The West Virginia Legislature is considering a plan to ask voters to approve $1 billion of bonds for state road projects, according to the Charleston Daily Mail.

The Virginia Department of Transportation and the office of transportation public-private partnerships have released a request for information to develop a procurement strategy for the state’s five transportation operations centers.

A Louisiana panel studying the tolls on twin state-toll bridges across the Mississippi River in New Orleans has cautioned against removing the fees.

Citing three years of declining passenger counts, Moody's Investors Service downgraded Albuquerque International Sunport's senior debt to A1 from Aa3 and returned the outlook to stable from negative.

The Ohio Department of Transportation warned it was going to have to slice its budget and delay some projects by up to 20 years due to insufficient funds.

The House on Tuesday approved a 23d short-term extension to fund the Federal Aviation Administration for another three weeks, the first step in averting a shutdown and giving lawmakers time to craft a long-awaited multi-year reauthorization bill.

CHICAGO — Fitch Ratings hit St. Louis' public transit agency with a downgrade late last week as it continues to work on details of a debt restructuring and reduction plan planned for next year that would bolster its long-term fiscal health.

The New York City metropolitan region stands to lose billion of dollars through delays in infrastructure projects, the new executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said Monday.