Transportation industry

DALLAS - With revenues falling and costs rising, the Regional Transportation District of metropolitan Denver is developing a backup plan for its FasTracks transit program in the event voters refuse to raise more sales taxes to complete all the projects.

The South Carolina Transportation Infrastructure Bank expects to competitively sell today $93.6 million of revenue bonds to refund debt issued between 1998 and 2000.

Fitch Ratings Tuesday downgraded $236 million of outstanding Alabama State Port Authority revenue bonds to BBB-plus from A-minus and said the outlook is stable.

DALLAS — The first of two refunding deals planned by the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport will be the largest bond issue this week in Texas.

The Senate is likely to decide this week whether it will join the House in approving funds that could be used to establish a national infrastructure bank and pay for high-speed rail projects.

DALLAS — Tulsa, Okla., will finance the next 12 months of its five-year street improvement program with the proceeds from Thursday’s competitive sale of $70 million of general obligation bonds.

The Detroit Metropolitan Airport plans to install up to 22 gaming machines to lift revenue amid falling flight traffic.

Massachusetts Secretary of Transportation Jim Aloisi announced Friday that he will step down from his post by Nov. 1, the same time that a new bonding authority, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, will begin overseeing most surface transportation systems throughout the state.

David Mack rebuffed New York Gov. David Paterson’s call to step down as vice chairman of the board at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and as a board member of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey last week.

The New York Senate last week confirmed Jay Walder as the new chairman and chief executive officer of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

SAN FRANCISCO — Like a patron at a Las Vegas buffet, the airport that serves the city is sampling a variety of the bond provisions enacted in this year’s federal stimulus bill.

BRADENTON, Fla. - The Mississippi Department of Transportation yesterday announced that due to the credit crisis, it has suspended the procurement process for the state's first toll road to be built as a public-private partnership.

Despite the lagging economy, the summer season proved to be busy at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

DALLAS - Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport is moving toward a $1.5 billion bond-financed renovation of the four original terminals that debuted 35 years ago.

Florida has dipped into its transportation trust fund for money to keep other programs going - an action other states may be forced to take if revenues continue to decline, market participants said.

DALLAS - The New Orleans Regional Transit Authority has proposed a $212 million streetcar expansion effort that would be financed with $73.5 million of sales tax revenue bonds and $121 million in federal transit funds.

New York Gov. David Paterson's choice to run the Metropolitan Transportation Authority said at a hearing yesterday that he would work with the Legislature to find a solution to the cash-strapped agency's needs but didn't offer proposals of his own. The state Senate will consider the nomination of Jay Walder as chairman and chief operating officer at a full confirmation hearing tomorrow.

New York's Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority's is returning to the competitive market on Thursday after a hiatus since 2001. The deal, a $158 million taxable Build America Bond offering, is coming on the heals of outlook changes to negative by two rating agencies last week.

CHICAGO - With an upgrade in hand, the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission heads into the market next week with $600 million of Garvees and will return next month with $300 million of road bonds that mark the final installment of borrowing under a $2 billion construction program.

The Government Accountability Office has issued a legal decision that says highways maintained by private third parties under public-private partnerships, including tolled highways, are eligible for federal highway grant funding.