Transportation industry

The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday approved an ordinance extending the city’s lease with the Birmingham Airport Authority giving it nine more years to operate Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport and allowing it to issue debt for improvements.

SAN FRANCISCO — The Los Angeles World Airports Board of Directors on Monday agreed to a $75 million settlement with bondholders in a seven-year-old dispute over United Airlines special facilities revenue bonds sold to make improvements at Los Angeles International Airport.

CHICAGO — Underwriters interested in working on Chicago Transit Authority bond sales over the next two years have until Oct. 13 to submit their qualifications for review.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey last week announced that Susan Baer will serve as director of aviation, overseeing the John F. Kennedy, Newark Liberty, and LaGuardia airports.

TRENTON, N.J. - The three gubernatorial candidates in New Jersey addressed budget deficits, tax hikes, and ways to replenish the state’s Transportation Trust Fund, which will run out of funding in fiscal 2012, during their first debate Thursday evening in Trenton.

LOS ANGELES — Public-private partnerships may or may not be the way to finance transportation infrastructure in California, according to the mixed opinions of panelists at a symposium here this week, but it’s pretty clear that the state’s general fund can’t do much more.

DALLAS — A passenger rail line expected to begin in Juarez, Mexico, could cross the international boundary into El Paso, Tex., under a plan the sister cities are considering.

BRADENTON, Fla. — Financial closing on the $1 billion Port of Miami Tunnel project has been delayed at least a week so that Miami commissioners can act on a $50 million letter of credit at their next meeting on Oct. 8.

Atlanta officials last week said a preliminary assessment showed 474 homes were affected by recent flooding and approximately 1,900 residents sought some level of federal assistance.

DALLAS — A new report predicts a slower than expected economic recovery in Kansas unless the state can find additional revenues to finance its next 10-year transportation plan.

DALLAS - Austin's plan to introduce commuter rail service to its northern suburbs is running nearly two years behind schedule, as the $105 million Capital MetroRail remains sidelined by technical snags.

CHICAGO - Chicago Mayor Richard Daley yesterday recommended Terry Peterson - the former chief executive officer of the Chicago Housing Authority - to lead the Chicago Transit Authority board following public finance banker Carole Brown's departure.

SAN FRANCISCO - Fitch Ratings upgraded $3.8 billion of San Francisco International Airport revenue bonds to A-plus from A Monday, citing relatively strong performance during an economic downturn that has badly battered most of the nation's other airports.

WASHINGTON - Congress has until tomorrow, the end of the fiscal year, to approve a continuing resolution to keep the federal government funded.

BRADENTON, Fla. - Confusion continues to surround the $1 billion Port of Miami Tunnel concession project, which was expected to reach financial close by Thursday.

The New York State Thruway Authority plans to refund $521.7 million of auction-rate securities this week with a retail order period beginning tomorrow and institutional pricing Thursday. The refunding will further reduce the state's outstanding ARS to $600 million.

WASHINGTON - Airports are likely to face financial difficulties into next year because, despite their successful efforts to stabilize their debt portfolios, they are expected to have a continued slump in airline passenger traffic, Fitch Ratings said in a recent report.

DALLAS - A year after issuing a record $5.3 billion of debt, the North Texas Tollway Authority is preparing a $343 million bond package that will tie up loose ends from its flurry of financing in 2008.

The head of the Arkansas Blue Ribbon Committee on Highway Finance said last week that options for providing at least $200 million of new money each year to the Highway and Transportation Department are becoming clearer.

Air travel may be down, but bonds sold to build a cargo facility at a New York City airport managed to pull up in time, according to Standard & Poor's.