Was the Dallas North Tollway supposed to become free?
Posted by Snobolski@reddit | Dallas | View on Reddit | 146 comments
Posted by Snobolski@reddit | Dallas | View on Reddit | 146 comments
Key-Handle6764@reddit
It was paid off in 2005, but there is no ‘end date’ - funds continue to cover ongoing maintenance, growth etc…
Necoras@reddit
Not to mention the DNT has been built out further to the north significantly in the past 20 years. All of that ongoing construction costs money. We aren't willing to increase gas taxes so.... tolls it is.
MetaWhirledPeas@reddit
Gas taxes are self-increasing as the number of Texas motorists continues to grow. More drivers = more money.
Necoras@reddit
No, more drivers increases the cost of maintenance necessary on the roads. They increase the number of lanes that are necessary. Meanwhile the purchasing power of the taxes raised has decreased steadily due to inflation. Thus we require new funding sources, such as toll roads.
MetaWhirledPeas@reddit
That's a good point; the gas tax needs to be a *rate* rather than a fixed per-gallon amount. That's a real problem.
kpmelomane21@reddit
Right?? Maintenence costs money, and they also keep building more (which is fine)
MetaWhirledPeas@reddit
That's literally why there's a gas tax.
Neckrongonekrypton@reddit
Than don’t say it’s going to be free in 30 years. We’re citizens not civil engineers.
ihatemendingwalls@reddit
The claim comes from a reporter reporting on the Texas Turnpike Authority's plans at the time, there were no government officials that lied to you.
The NTTA toll roads still cost money because the DNT was extended northward multiple times since the 70s and the SRT was built.
Of course, you would know all this if you had READ THE ARTICLE
MagicWishMonkey@reddit
All the people here wishing the tollway was as shitty as 75 is really blowing my mind, haha.
EpitomEngineer@reddit
Comparably, the quality and cleanliness of that maintenance is much better than the public highways
GoshinTW@reddit
One more lane bro
xoxokaralee@reddit
do you know how much money this state has for roadway projects? txdot has an absolutely INSANE budget. there is zero reason why dnt specifically shouldnt be made into a FREEway. it has zero reason or need to be managed.
Mrhappypants02@reddit
I posted a top level replay that explains that TxDOT is actually in a funding shortfall despite that massive budget. They do not have the funds to take this one one.
Deep_Mechanic_@reddit
Just wait until you find out where the unused funds from property taxes go. Teachers are underpaid on purpose
FleaBottoms@reddit
I’m old… the Turnpike (Dallas to Fort Worth) was always having (needed) maintenance for years after it was “paid off”.
LA_Alfa@reddit
"Always take points on the gross, not the net. No movie has ever made money in Hollywood" - someone
5yrup@reddit
The Turnpike also managed to get attached to the I-30 project and start receiving loads of federal funding. That doesn't seem to be in the cards for DNT. It would likely become just a state highway and the state doesn't seem to want to have to pay for it.
FleaBottoms@reddit
True. I always kept plenty of nickels and dimes I. The car in the early 70s. God Bless the toll tag. 🏷️
Snobolski@reddit (OP)
Academic_Librarian75@reddit
They they sold it off to some foreign company, want to say based in Spain and they continually increase debt, so it is perpetually being paid for. Not to mention that the Texas govt has now made multiple expansions to what we’re once freeways by adding maybe 1 free lane and 2-3 “express lanes” that can get as high as $20 when there is heavy traffic on the free lanes.
kimchiking2021@reddit
It's even worse than that. The DNT pays for another country's pension system.
cwsharpless@reddit
That was only the express lanes on 635 and 130. DNT and the other toll roads are owned by NTTA (which is a state agency), and the express lanes on I-30 and I-35E are owned by the state.
pfknone@reddit
The then head of the Turnpike Authority said when they opened the DFW turnpike in the 70's??? That they would never again turn a toll road into a free hwy. Not a direct quote but you get the idea
UnknownQTY@reddit
The original plan did not account for ongoing maintenance, and TxDoT deciding they didn’t want to take on that cost, and signing another lease for it, and indeed, more construction.
Upstairs_Balance_464@reddit
Here comes the “I live in a suburb that only exists because of the DNT, I bought a house that’s cheap in part because of the inconvenience of this, but now that I’m here it is a TRAVESTY!!!” crowd.
IAmSixNine@reddit
Is that like living next to Love Field and complaining about aircraft noise?
DFWRailVideos@reddit
Or living by a railroad track and complaining about trains.
IAmSixNine@reddit
I am one of those who would enjoy living next to train tracks or a switch yard.
I would build a tall deck for some good watching and hope i meet new friends.
PomeloPepper@reddit
You mean "the whole house vibrational massage?"
rickcinbigd@reddit
Yep and here comes the "I was gifted a house in the core of the city by my parents where the infrastructure was already built, so you can suck it" crowd.
Upstairs_Balance_464@reddit
Lmao, more like I’m not scared to live around black people and don’t lust after having a big tacky media room so I get rewarded by not having to sit in traffic slowly developing a fat ass.
rickcinbigd@reddit
Lmao. You have not been to Frisco lately, friend.
Snobolski@reddit (OP)
Yep I have a co-worker who bought "cheap" in Frisco, they and spouse both have to take tolls to work. Factor in cost of tolls and they could've bought a slightly smaller house much closer to their jobs and not be sitting in the car 90 minutes, each, every day.
It's all about what you value I guess. I have a 10 minute commute on surface streets. My time is worth (to me) the extra on the housing bills.
Beginning-Head-4006@reddit
But I bet their school district is killer , it worths everything. Also, I'm sure their neighbor is a lot more desirable
Trapped-In-The_90s@reddit
Desirable is subjective. You couldn’t pay me to live in Plano or Frisco. Devoid of character and franchise hell.
Keep_Plano_Corporate@reddit
Indistinguishable from most of Dallas and Richardson north of Walnut Hill. But yeah, totally "franchise hell."
Optimistiqueone@reddit
Have you been to North Dallas? This couldn't be further from the truth.
MagicWishMonkey@reddit
If you think Plano and Frisco are anything like north dallas and richardson I am skeptical that you actually live here.
Beginning-Head-4006@reddit
Then ig u just love homeless vagrant popping in your yard, & gabgbanger shooting up your windows
dajenkumgod@reddit
Actually it's really nice in the city and you're just racist and prejudiced, you should read the gospel and accept love into your heart. People that are selfish don't deserve to live, you should learn to put others before yourself and always try to make the world a better place
EtchASketchNovelist@reddit
I didn't read the original comment before they deleted it, but these are words of wisdom that I wish half of the political spectrum would take to heart (and the other political half would truly take action on).
Friendly-Win1457@reddit
I always think of cookie cutter houses the further you go out. It just feels off.
ty944@reddit
Making a lot of assumptions here pal.
myassisgrassss@reddit
I mean, back and forth for me is $100/mo. To deep ellum from Frisco. 3-5 days a week. Not sure the complaint. And us mfers in Frisco can afford it so not sure the issue
MagicWishMonkey@reddit
I have a friend who did that back before traffic wasn't nearly as bad as it is now (like 2008 or so) and after a couple of years he fucking hated it and was desperate to gtfo
EtchASketchNovelist@reddit
Same here, 10 minute commute on surface streets. I love it. Though, I've rejected some job offers which would have paid more.
Pecan_Artist@reddit
This right here! My wife and I share a SUV and she lives 10 minutes away from work (no freeway). I travel for work and work from home so take the rail to DFW. When I need the car, I drop her off to work. Since she doesn't have to commute far to work, she has energy for after work dates. She can maintain a social life with her friends. Since we share a car, we have more money going into retirement. Sure I gave up the suburban life for a condo near downtown. But I can walk everywhere and have low cost of living. My wife has a smile on her face when she comes home because she didn't fight traffic.
TeaKingMac@reddit
I dunno. I get why people hate it, but the experience of driving on DNT or SRT is so much better than their federally funded counterparts.
Like driving on 35 is a fucking nightmare, and 75 isn't much better
1uno124@reddit
They hate it because there's a stretch of town where it's a forced option if you want to maneuver north/south. Personally, 635 is a great example of what all roads should try to be: free with a toll element. If you want maximize speed, pay for the tolls. If you don't want to pay for tolls, great you can still get around
la-fours@reddit
100% this. The DNT is a straight 25 mile shot to the heart of Dallas. Can’t ask for more than that. If it became free people here would collectively lose their minds at the traffic that would ensue.
TheyFoundWayne@reddit
If they dared to switch to variable tolling, like the express lanes on other highways in the Metroplex, they could ensure there was never any traffic…but I bet it would be very pricy at times.
Sejbag@reddit
Variable tolling is a scam. It just means the tolls are always more expensive.
MagicWishMonkey@reddit
It's not a scam at all, some people will happily pay $10 to shave 30-45 minutes off their commute (I used to do it all the time when I worked in Carrolton). The alternative is fixed pricing which would mean the tollway would be congested most of the time so nobody would be getting anywhere any faster than 75.
Sejbag@reddit
Bold assumptions. At rush hour the 121 express, which has variable pricing, is still heavily congested too. On top of its obscene pricing.
ihatemendingwalls@reddit
The fact that you're competing with 8 million people to drive traffic free isn't a scam
BitGladius@reddit
IDK, every time I've taken DNT vaguely near rush hour I've ended up in 1st gear on the highway.
patmorgan235@reddit
And now there's no revenue for maintaining the road!
Rnewell4848@reddit
635 is a scourge on humanity
Legitimate_Bird_5712@reddit
Almost died on it 20 years ago, never driven on it since.
SuccotashOther277@reddit
You should see 635E now. Nice lanes that change out of nowhere, with vague construction-style outlines of where the lane should be and praying that the 18 wheeler next to you sees it and the driver next to you stops texting for a few seconds.
Pecan_Artist@reddit
Haha your description sounds like hell.
hkral11@reddit
My previous commute was from NorthPark highway to Arlington and DNT and 75 feel equally hellish getting from Northwest Highway to I-30. The way traffic backs up and the crappy transition from DNT to 35 South almost makes 75 preferable. I’ve gotten stuck right there for 45 mins trying to get home in rush hour
Tchaik748@reddit
I've joked that the only way HP and UP would allow a freeway through is if it were ReStRiCtEd AcCeSs aka toll road.
MagicWishMonkey@reddit
There is already a toll road that cuts through it...
pcamera1@reddit
Free tollway usage lol thats almost as crazy as lizard people walking among us.
Snobolski@reddit (OP)
The truth can be crazy indeed!
Aliecat78@reddit
Yes. All tollroad supposedly are suppose to become free. I believe 30 use to be a toll road then it was free. But they sell off the roads to foreign companies that make $$$
Optimistiqueone@reddit
Yes. They sold it like that would happen.
My mom didn't believe it. She said they would find a reason to keep charging. That once people can make that money they would never stop.
Wizzmer@reddit
Anyone remember when I30 was a tollway?
MegglesRuth@reddit
So I have inside knowledge of the Tollway in the 90s and again in the late 2000s. My grandfather was on the board in the 90s and my brother worked there 2008 - 2010 (yes nepotism at its finest).
The board and the cities 100% believed it would become free and would follow through with its promises in the 90s. He was also high up in local politics and was involved because it really started as an initiative to help in his opinion. I was at the party for the opening of the Addison toll tunnel, several parts of George Bush, etc. All had impassioned speeches about this.
Obviously, board members can lie about these kind of things but from family chats, it did really seem that was the intention.
The implication of the Toll Tag really showed how profitable it could be and it just went wild from there. (Grandfather had already left). By the time my brother started in 2008, it was general knowledge it was strictly about profit.
LargeDietCokeNoIce@reddit
All toll roads are supposed to be free after being “paid off”. Funny, exactly zero ever are.
DFWRailVideos@reddit
Never. Tolls cover maintenance and operating expenses regarding the tollway. Asking for tolls to end would mean NTTA either takes money from taxpayers (which is basically a toll), or incorporation as a State Highway or FM road (run by TxDOT), which will just take taxpayer dollars and probably be a far worse road.
The tollway's construction and development costs are paid off by the tolls but there's no way you can "pay off" a road that requires constant maintenance. If you don't like paying for it, don't drive it!
MephistoHamProducts@reddit
And for all the people complaining about "It should be free", I'm willing to bet that 99% of them would answer "Hell naw" if you asked what kind of tax increase they'd be willing to deal with to cover upkeep and expansion.
MagicWishMonkey@reddit
They all want the tollway to be as shitty and miserable as 75, I don't get it.
Temporary_Nail_6468@reddit
Gas tax (state portion)is $.20 per gallon and hasn’t changed since 1991. The inflation rate for road related expenses is approximately 4% per year. I wonder why we can’t keep up without building toll roads……..
I would totally be fine with increasing gas taxes to pay for expenses relating to driving cars. With the caveat that there needs to be a system in place so that EVs are paying their share. We should all pay our share.
Keep_Plano_Corporate@reddit
I own a F150 Lightning and pay enough EV registration to probably drive about 17000 miles a year in an ICE equivalent F150. I actually only drive about 15k miles. So I pay a premium to drive an EV in the great state of Texas.
Imagine driving a Tesla Model 3. You'd probably think a new midsized sedan should get at min 33mpg these days (a 2026 Camry gets 50mpg), that person is paying a yearly EV tax equivalent to buying enough gas to drive 33,000 miles a year. It's far cheaper to buy a new Camry from a per gallon gas tax vs yearly EV registration standpoint, than to buy and register a Tesla Model 3 or similar EV sedan in Texas.
But yes, tell us again how EV drivers in Texas need to pay more taxes.
5yrup@reddit
EVs in Texas are paying more than their share compared to gas taxes in Texas. They added a $200 registration fee ($400 for the first year) surcharge for EVs.
At $0.20/gal that's 1,000gal of gas. If the car was a 25mpg car that would be an average of 25,000mi driven. But these are EV drivers, they likely would have picked something getting even better mileage than that. The average car drives more like 14,000mi.
Keep_Plano_Corporate@reddit
I own a F150 Lightning and pay enough EV registration to probably drive about 17000 miles a year in an ICE equivalent F150. I actually only drive about 15k miles. So I pay a premium to drive an EV in the great state of Texas.
Imagine driving a Tesla Model 3. You'd probably think a new midsized sedan should get at min 33mpg these days (a 2026 Camry gets 50mpg), that person is paying a yearly EV tax equivalent to buying enough gas to drive 33,000 miles a year. It's far cheaper to buy a new Camry from a per gallon gas tax vs yearly EV registration standpoint, than to buy and register a Tesla Model 3 or similar EV sedan in Texas.
But yes, tell us again how EV drivers in Texas need to pay more taxes.
SuccotashOther277@reddit
Good luck getting a politician to run on a platform of making gasoline more expensive. Even though we will just pay more in tolls instead.
MephistoHamProducts@reddit
I mean, if we're going with "we should all pay our share" then the increase really needs to be focused on diesel, or commercial trucking, since trucks cause far more wear and tear on roads than EVs do.
constant_flux@reddit
That's an impossible question to answer without knowing exactly how much taxes would go up. As someone who works from home and seldom needs to drive, I have zero problems paying for public roads.
Geoffrey-Jellineck@reddit
It's this scene exactly. https://youtu.be/PYbnB5toqRI
Snobolski@reddit (OP)
Same for the "jail all the homeless" proponents.
constant_flux@reddit
You absolutely can pay off a road -- you're paying off the bonds used to finance the construction up to a certain point.
My car also needs maintenance. Does that mean I can't ever "pay it off?" Of course not, that's silly.
DFWRailVideos@reddit
I mean more that you can't stop putting money into a road, it has to come from somewhere. People advocate for abolishing tolls but they don't realize that when the toll money dries up, the road can't be maintained (unless TxDOT steps in).
Chasqui@reddit
That, of course, changed. The BS line given was “we are subsidizing the rest of the system “. I’m sure there were a few people who naively thought it would be free.
Snobolski@reddit (OP)
DNT is like people who keep getting mortgages to add on to their house - it's never paid off.
MagicWishMonkey@reddit
It's more like people who keep making huge additions to their house, of course it's going to cost more.
The tollway didn't stretch out past Frisco back in the 70's. It also requires a ton of upkeep and maintenance, there's a reason it's one of the smoothest roadways in the city.
elliequay@reddit
30 was a tollroad when it was built, was eventually paid off and was free from then on out. I don’t blame people in the 70’s for thinking that was going to happen again and that a company’s word meant something. We aren’t so trusting today.
Necoras@reddit
Eh, less a company's than politicians. The gas tax in Texas hasn't increased since 1991. We've also made income taxes unconstitutional, and people bitch and moan about property taxes every year about now. The only real option left to pay for roads is an increase in tolls or registration fees. Tolls get people mad at what they perceive as "foreign" actors, which is perfect for politicians.
NexFrost@reddit
They should become free once their principal debt has been paid off.
If they want to continue building then do the same thing we've been doing: put a toll on it when it's built. Don't use the fund as a piggy-bank to build future toll-roads, maintenance only.
Lshear@reddit
If I remember correctly, it was supposed to be free eventually that was what we were all told and then at some point they changed it and now any toll road north tollway or Bush they’re never gonna be free. It’s always going to be tolls. The last tollway that was paid off and became free was I30 many years ago.
ShouldofNoneButter@reddit
Yes, then was sold to a Spanish investment firm……
Sowf_Paw@reddit
Yes it was. I remember my mom used to complain about it every time we took the toll road.
I-30 used to be a toll road. It is something they used to actually do.
USMCLee@reddit
Another trick they use to keep the debt is refinance every few years so they pay as little principal as possible.
No_Grand7184@reddit
I read somewhere that so long as the tollway is expanding, the owner can continue to charge tolls. So, tolls in perpetua
donsanedrin@reddit
When the NTTA, its current form, was created, they decided that ALL tollway projects that they decide to build across North Texas will count as one combined debt.
And as long as there is debt, all tolls in all existing areas will continue charging.
So, here in north Garland where a section of the George Bush Turnpike is already reaching 25 years old, this section has almost certainly paid for itself. But they won't remove the tolls.
If they build some bridge way out there in Little Elm, something that nobody asked for, or nobody within 20 miles asked for, your nearby toll roads will never be paid off.
Hey! How about the NTTA goes and plants some useless shrubbery along the embankment of your toll road! And adds some pointless concrete art where the overpass is at.
Anything to run up the bill.
GTI-Mk6@reddit
The people who live on the tollway love it. Keeps the poors out and reduces traffic.
DFWRailVideos@reddit
"the poors"
What is this, 1956?
plastic_jungle@reddit
As a rail and transit enthusiast you know damn well that attitude is alive and well.
DFWRailVideos@reddit
Stops a ton of transit expansion that ought to have happened by now
GTI-Mk6@reddit
Personally I think we should tear the highway out and replace it with a DART train line
plastic_jungle@reddit
You mean restore its original form
Snobolski@reddit (OP)
Or Frisco.
patmorgan235@reddit
Go to any zonning hearing in the meteoplex about apartments and you'll see what where talking about
RandleMcMurphy1962@reddit
Reduced traffic? Have you been on the tollway lately?
GTI-Mk6@reddit
Imagine if it was free. Supply and demand.
RandleMcMurphy1962@reddit
Can’t disagree. Honestly, tollways just push ‘the poors’ to the parallel access roads. So making it free would benefit locals who mostly use surrounding surface streets. Not sure folks would like the added tax burden though.
la-fours@reddit
The DNT has nowhere near the kind of traffic a comparable road like that should have in other cities. The most I’ve ever taken to go from the harry Hines exit to PGA is 50 minutes with no accidents and thats at like peak rush hour. It’s a solid 30-35 minutes during non peak times with no accidents.
NJB9891@reddit
“Lately” as in “any time in the last 3 decades.”
carenard@reddit
what... if anything it increases traffic around the tollway
Fit_Smile1146@reddit
“Reduced traffic?” Yeah right! It’s always traffic..
ArtemisiasApprentice@reddit
Yes. That’s how it was “sold” to voters way back when. I remember my parents discussing it, and thinking that it sounded like a fair deal. But apparently promises made to the populace aren’t really worth anything if breaking them means someone, somewhere, can make some money off us.
deja-roo@reddit
They're still building it.
GeekyTexan@reddit
And they always will be.
nbd9000@reddit
there is an even older picture from like 1975 showing it would be paid off in 1995, and that yes, it was supposed to b come free. the corporate interests that guide republican hands decided it would be better to sell the road so it could continue to rip people off.
kozzy1ted2@reddit
Hell, didn’t Rick Perry sell the thing to a foreign country?
Snobolski@reddit (OP)
I think you're thinking of that crazy proposed I-35 corridor that was gonna have freeway and rail and be like a mile wide from San Antonio to D/FW
kozzy1ted2@reddit
Yeah, I’m not sure tbh. Thought it was some French outfit through Perry. 🤷🏻♂️
Suspicious-Manner410@reddit
This was the same story for the Hardy toll road in Houston
FrankyNavSystem@reddit
My dad told me it was when I was growing up. He sometimes avoided the sections he said were already paid for.
Lampizza25@reddit
Lol it be nice, but you know greed and stuff.
Consistent_Reward@reddit
NTTA has always claimed (since 1990, anyway) that stopping tolls on the DNT would have prevented the building of future toll roads.
Plus maintenence.
So, basically, a Ponzi scheme.
The only reason this 1975 report existed was because the DFW Turnpike was getting close to paid off well ahead of its schedule. That, of course, actually happened.
And the DNT was supposed to be much like it - only a toll road for as long as it took to pay it off. But it only would have been the Tollway as it was then - as far as LBJ and no further.
whytakemyusername@reddit
If you drive down George Bush up near Coit, there's about 50 recovery trucks all parked up. There's no way in hell they need more than 2 or 3 vehicles in order to cover that road. It's all just writing money off to keep the charges as high as possible.
Kineth@reddit
The Bush was supposed to be as well.
Lonely_Refuse4988@reddit
Something similar happened in Atlanta, GA suburbs, with a major toll road promised to residents as ‘temporary’ and going public/free once it was paid off, but still in hands of profit seeking entity and ripping off drivers! 😂🤣🤷♂️
joshman150@reddit
GA 400 did go free once it was paid off in 2013
abusuru@reddit
The boot licking is strong in here. Yes everyone would complain about new taxes in lieu of tolls but the tolls are just a tax right now, and a high one. Figuring in the tolls, we have one of the highest tax burdens in the country for all but the very wealthy. It's ok, even patriotic, to look at our huge tax bills and our government that under funds everything and want it to be better.
TopMidnight3173@reddit
Indeed. I don't get it, really. NTTA is not accountable to the public. TxDOT is. If TxDOT is shit at managing our infrastructure and a bloated nightmare, then we as the public can hold them accountable for that. We cannot do anything to NTTA besides decide whether or not to participate in toll-based roads.
That said -- think about it like this. When I drive on DNT from the galleria to Frisco and it costs me $11 to go 5 miles does that mean it should cost me effectively $2.10 per mile on every road I use? Is that just the going rate per mile to maintain and build new roads in our state?
Also -- how do variable-rate tolls (635 Texpress comes into mind here) factor in to this usage model?
5yrup@reddit
The thing is, to build a toll road you just need the counties involved to allow it. To raise the gas taxes to fund it, you need the whole state to agree to raise taxes.
Good luck convincing people way out in the country to spend ever more billions on more highways in urban areas.
garcia202@reddit
Why do we accept toll roads?
AlliedR2@reddit
Like the Dallas-Ft.Worth Tollway (which, once paid for became I-30) it was indeed supposed to become free once paid for and a maintenance buffer established. Then, to keep from increasing taxes the politicians decided to sell it to a foreign entity and take the revenue of that sale and say "look I raised money without raising taxes". Thus began the idea to keep toll roads forever tolled. Making us continue to pay for what we already paid for many times over. And the side benefit of giving those who could afford it a way to get from place to place without having to drive with the riff raff common people - you know, a class tiered road system!
Snobolski@reddit (OP)
That was a "Turnpike" not a "tollway."
The Rangers first home was Turnpike Stadium, BTW.
jackfrost6432@reddit
It'll never be free. When it gets closer to payoff they add millions in repairs and upkeep to keep debt to charge folks. That all my friends. Have fun!
Mrhappypants02@reddit
Alright,
Since this comes up reliably every few months, imma make comment. THIS IS NOT A DEFENSE OF THE NTTA OR TXDOT, just an explanation to what has actually happened and why its still tolled.
Initially, when the DNT was built, the NTTA (then Texas turnpike Authority) was to use the collected tolls to maintain the road as well as pay off the bonds used to fund the construction of the DNT. This is, in fact, what happened to I-30. It was initially it was a toll road, then handed over to the DOT after the last bond payment. Since then, the budget for TxDOT has only gotten worse. Despite budgeting more money annually that any other state (except for Caltrans), we are in a severe budget shortfall. We have more infrastructure than pretty much every other state, and its not close. In fact, Texas tops the list as the state with the most bridge structures by more than double.
This shortfall is largely due to how road construction is funded. Revenue for TxDOT to build and Maintain our roads comes for a few sources. These are Bonds, registration fess, and gas tax (both federal and local). The gas tax does a lot of the heavy lifting on that funding. Both Federally and Locally, the gas tax has not been increased since the early 90's, hardly keeping up with the raising cost of labor and materials needed to build things. Couple this with the amount of people moving to Texas, and you create a system that is not only struggling to keep up, but actively falling behind. Not only can we not build sufficient infrastructure for the populace, maintaining the current shit is getting more and more expensive.
Because of this, it was decided that the NTTA needed continue to operate in its current state maintaining and funding new expansions, using tolls to do so.
Basically, that was the intent in the beginning, but life got really unexpectedly complicated in 30 years.
Electrical_Long_4222@reddit
I mean yeah I hate the Tollway, hate the concept of the Tollway, and thank every lucky star that I don't have to drive on it.
But I get that it's a massive boon for all the towns that sit along its path. The overwhelming majority of the massive growth DFW has seen in the last 10 years has been a direct result of the DNT. It only makes sense that TXDOT and the Tollway Authority would scrap whatever plans to make it a freeway in favor of continued massive expansions and improvements.
The DNT discussion mirrors the discussion around private and charter schools. These special carve-outs get created as a way to explicitly hamstring free services so that rich shitheads don't have to integrate.
webra1@reddit
I-30 was once a toll road. From 1957 and paid off in 1978.
https://flashbackdallas.com/2014/06/02/dfw-turnpike-1957/
KC5SDY@reddit
Back when I-30 became free, one of the toll executives said they would see to it that no other toll road would ever become free. I do not ever see DNT or Bush going free.
GustavusAdolphin@reddit
It was also supposed to stop at Addison. The scope of construction has expanded past the original vision
Amoeba-Shteve@reddit
They decided against it because they couldn’t come up with a new name for it. 🥴
jfb1027@reddit
Yes… but no
TheGringoOutlaw@reddit
The issue is that it probably would've been free by 2005 if they didn't expand it. it went from going to downtown Dallas to Addison to now in the process of going to FM 428 in northern Denton County.
misterblackvenom@reddit
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Careless-Resource-72@reddit
For those who came from California and their tax scams, welcome home.
HotelIndiaFoxtrot@reddit
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.
PS- hahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahah