State takes steps to end Trans-Texas Corridor

The $175 billion proposal to build a network of toll roads and rail lines, the brainchild of Gov. Rick Perry, has run into fierce opposition virtually since it was proposed in 2002. State officials told reporters Wednesday that the agency notified federal highway authorities this week to say it wants to halt what was to be the first leg of the project — along the heavily congested Interstate 35.

The department has already spent over $15 million on environmental studies and planning documents associated with the I-35 corridor, and the cost will go higher as the cancellation process grinds to a halt, officials said.

"We made it very clear that it would be some time before we could completely transition away from the TTC," department director Amadeo Saenz said. "We were and we still are in the middle of environmental studies and those issues have to run their course as we move forward."

TxDOT has already spent $12 million on the environmental review process for the I-35 corridor, which would have stretched from the Mexico border to the Oklahoma line. Costs associated with canceling a private contract to build the corridor have hit $3.5 million and could go up to about $4 million, Saenz said.

The costs will mount further in coming months as the department holds public meetings about the results of the environmental study, he said.