Thanks to low bids on stimulus project and lending from the Texas Legislature, TxDOT officials announced yesterday that the agency estimates it will spend a "record $5.9 billion on projects in the fiscal year beginning Sept. 1." This is according to today's Austin American-Statesman front page story "More green means go for TxDOT projects."
The news is particularly good in my Central Texas backyard, where several unfinished projects will get restarted, including $90 million in stimulus funds to go to the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority to begin the U.S. 290 East tolllway.
The news isn't all positive, though, as TxDOT says that in two years the funds, both federal and borrowed, will run out leaving TxDOT once again dependent on gas-tax revenue and help from the Legislature.
Tell us what you think: Do the benefits of temporary funds, such as those provided by the federal stimulus act, outweigh the risks of doing nothing?
