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1. |
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The NO folks talk about all the
landscaping along the toll road. We
already know that the Army Corps of Engineers has said trees can not
be planted in the levees. Rebecca Dugger has proposed putting the
trees in containers. Here are my questions about the trees and
possible answers. |
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a) |
How are the
trees going to be watered? As a gardener, I know anything I grow in
a container has to be watered daily to survive the Texas summer. So,
where is the water coming from? Will it be a sprinkler? Hand
watering or lots of prayer? |
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b)
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What is
the life expectancy of the trees in the containers? I would not
think they would survive very many years in our crazy weather in
containers. Will the NTTA keep replacing these trees as they die? |
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c)
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How tall
will there trees get and big will the containers be? Will the
trees along the toll road also be in
containers or will they be planted in the floodway? If they are
planted in the floodway won't that slow down the flood water? |
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2 |
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I read in the Wall Street Journal
that the Trinity Toll Road will be built
on a 2 foot base of dirt to keep it out of
the 100 year flood. What will keep the dirt base from washing away
when the toll road is flooded? |
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a)
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How high
up will the road be? This summer, the water nearly
touched the bottoms of the I-35 bridges
several times. I think the road would not be high enough to avoid
closure. |
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3 |
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What happens to all the
toll road
traffic when it closes due to high water? |
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4 |
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What happens when there is a traffic
accident? The nearest fire station or even police station is quite
a distance from the few entrances and exits to the toll
road. Could this just become another parking lot do to
frequent accidents? |
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5 |
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Since even The
Dallas Morning News admitted this weekend that the Trinity Toll
Road will not pay for itself in the first few years, will the
NTTA have to raise tolls on other toll
roads to pay for the bonds? |
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Editor's comments:
Sam Merten @ DallasBlog.com
(NTTA
Does It Again)
says:
I read on and felt the hit on my checking
account as the FAQ explained how tolls have gone up for TollTag
users at main plazas $.10 ($.25 for cash customers) and various
rates at ramp plazas. A full trip down the DNT? Now $3.05 for
TollTag users and $4.05 cash. The PGBT? Try $3.50 and $5.00.
Right after I finished contemplating how anyone in their right mind
doesn?t have a TollTag, I moved on to a section called ?What is the
money used for??
There it was. Plain as day. Six items were listed and stuck right in
the middle was ?Trinity Parkway in downtown Dallas.?
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6 |
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After the subprime meltdown on Wall
Street, who in their right mind will be willing to lend the NTTA
money? |
