Transportation industry

CHICAGO - The Wayne County, Mich., Airport Authority, which runs Detroit Metropolitan Airport, will come to market Thursday with $127 million of refunding bonds.

A constitutional amendment to extend a $575 million Garvee road bond program won by a sizeable majority in all 75 Arkansas counties in last week’s special election.

The North Carolina Turnpike Authority expects to sell $220 million of state appropriation revenue bonds in a two-day sale this week.

The on-again, off-again plans for an extension to a toll road that serves as an alternative to congested Interstate 5, the only freeway linking Orange County to San Diego County, looks to be back on again.

A Senate committee Wednesday voted unanimously to approve a bipartisan, $109 billion, two-year surface transportation bill that maintains current funding levels for highways and provides another $2 billion for a program that provides federal credit assistance for projects.

Supervisors and workers in a signal construction unit at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's Metro-North Hudson and Harlem commuter train lines have manipulated the payroll system by abusing overtime rules that inflate their salaries and pensions, New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said in a forensic audit of overtime practices released Wednesday.

DALLAS - After issuing $1.3 billion of revenue bonds under its new special projects lien, the North Texas Tollway Authority has maintained its critical A-level ratings on its first-tier main system revenue bonds.

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn and Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced last week the $1 billion reconstruction of the Chicago Transit Authority’s busy Red Line.

SAN FRANCISCO - California's plan for a bond-funded high-speed train system just got more expensive. Fifty billion dollars more expensive.

Santa Monica planned to sell $41 million of lease-revenue bonds this week to fund renovations of a parking garage to serve the city’s downtown shopping area and to refund existing bonds.

BRADENTON, Fla. - Broward County, Fla., has reached a milestone in its effort to move forward with an $800 million financing to support the $1.5 billion cost of a major runway extension and other improvements at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

DALLAS - Arkansas will be able to repair and upgrade more than 400 miles of Interstate highway with proceeds from $575 million of Garvee bonds being decided by voters on Tuesday, up from earlier estimates of 300 miles.

CHICAGO - The Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority plans to issue $14.4 million of bonds to finance a takeover of Toledo's parking system in a deal that gained final City Council approval last week.

SAN FRANCISCO - Washington anti-tax and initiative crusader Tim Eyman has filed a lawsuit to try to void the state's $519 million bond deal for a floating bridge project.

A political action group has been established to oppose a plan to increase the Arkansas severance tax on natural gas that could be on the November 2012 ballot.

Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe used his Saturday radio address to ask voters to support a $575 million road bond plan in the Nov. 8 special election.

DALLAS - Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe urges voters in a 30-second television ad being aired statewide to renew a $575 million Garvee highway bond program at next week's special election.

With the appointments two weeks ago of Joseph Lhota and Patrick Foye as heads of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, respectively, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has his own people in charge of the two major agencies.

CHICAGO - Cleveland Hopkins International Airport plans to price $75 million of passenger fee-backed revenue bonds Wednesday, its first new-money borrowing in 10 years.

Auditor general Jack Wagner called for increased investment in Pennsylvania’s crumbling roads and bridges, echoing suggestions made by Gov. Tom Corbett’s advisory commission over the summer.