Transportation industry

Pennsylvania Gov. Edward Rendell Monday called for a special session of the legislature to begin Aug. 23 to address the state’s $472.5 million transportation funding gap.

WASHINGTON — About $23 billion of transit bonds that are backed by sales tax have held onto strong credit ratings despite taking a hit from the economic recession and retaining their negative credit outlook, Moody’s Investors Service said Friday in a special report.

BRADENTON, Fla. — The Georgia Department of Transportation is moving forward with its second public-private partnership project — a long-discussed multi-modal passenger terminal in downtown Atlanta.

CHICAGO — Fitch Ratings stripped $9.3 million of special-assessment revenue bonds from the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority of their investment-grade rating Wednesday.

ALAMEDA, Calif. – California Treasurer Bill Lockyer raised eyebrows this week by questioning the viability of some segments of the state’s proposed high-speed passenger train system.

WASHINGTON — Congress is unlikely to authorize the creation of a national infrastructure bank before next summer, despite its potential to spur more private investment in transportation, water, and energy projects, transportation stakeholders from the public and private sectors said yesterday.

CHICAGO — Illinois and the Regional Transportation Authority of Illinois were able to overcome a steady stream of bad fiscal news as they entered the market this week with deals that drew strong-enough investor interest to keep the risk premium on interest rates down.

Clark County is expected to sell $236.85 million of revenue bonds on Tuesday to finance street, highway, and transit projects.

California Treasurer Bill Lockyer Wednesday announced the appointment of Christine Solich as executive director of the California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing Authority.

BRADENTON, Fla. — Miami-Dade County, Fla., next week is pricing $524 million of tax-exempt aviation revenue bonds in what is expected to be the last major financing for Miami International Airport’s $6.49 billion capital improvement plan.

New Jersey Transit Wednesday approved a $1.79 billion operating budget and a $1.35 billion capital plan for fiscal 2011, which began July 1.

West Virginia estimated it saved about $4 million on a $37.7 million general obligation road refinancing deal last week after Moody’s Investors Service upgraded the state’s GO rating to Aa1 from Aa2.

A bond package designed to ease transportation woes in Austin grew by $5 million to $90 million in a revised proposal released last week. The City Council is expected to vote later this month to put the general obligation bond proposal on the November general election ballot.

WASHINGTON — The Maryland Transportation Authority this week expects to price $299 million of revenue bonds for construction projects, the bulk of which will finance continuing construction of the InterCounty Connector.

CHICAGO — The Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan Airports Commission will enter the market later this month with a nearly $150 million mostly new-money sale of senior-lien revenue bonds as it seeks to take advantage of the federal alternative minimum tax holiday.

WASHINGTON — The Federal Transit Administration and U.S. Department of Transportation Thursday announced $300 million in competitive grants for cities and local agencies to pay for 53 transit proposals including bus, streetcar and trolley projects.

Holders of first-tier debt issued for the Las Vegas Monorail have nothing to show for their most recent scheduled interest payment.

Investors and the state of South Carolina are haggling over who will get a bigger share of revenue from a bankrupt bond-funded toll road.

DALLAS — The Port of Seattle will upgrade equipment at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and refinance several series of outstanding debt with proceeds from next week’s negotiated sale of $394.6 million of intermediate-line revenue bonds.

A public-private partnership of the Greater Birmingham Regional Planning Commission, the Georgia Department of Transportation, and Norfolk-Southern railroad will study the feasibility of a high-speed rail connection between Birmingham and Atlanta.