HomeMy WebLinkAboutRES 101408-Q - Support Tx Rail Relocate Fund
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RESOLUTION NO. /0/Z/ 08- C~
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
GEORGETOWN, TEXAS, EXPRESSING SUPPORT FOR
STATE LEGISLATIVE APPROPRIATION OF $200
MILLION ANNUALLY TO THE TEXAS RAIL
RELOCATION AND IMPROVEMENT FUND
WHEREAS, freight and passenger mobility is critical to the economic prosperity and
quality of life in the state of Texas and the Austin-San Antonio Corridor; and
WHEREAS, population growth and increased international trade have combined to create
both freight movement and passenger vehicle congestion throughout the state of Texas
and the Austin-San Antonio Corridor; and
WHEREAS, the state's population has grown by 57% and the total passenger miles driven
rose by 95% over the past 25 years, but highway lane miles increased by just 8% over the
same period; and
WHEREAS, the Austin-San Antonio corridor's population has doubled over the last 20
years and is expected to double again over the next 20 years; and
WHEREAS, NAFTA trade between the US and Mexico has grown to approximately $800
billion annually and represents thousands of jobs in Texas and the Austin-San Antonio
Corridor, and
WHEREAS, Interstate 35 has become the de facto NAFTA highway between the US,
Mexico, and Canada, used by over one million trucks per year involved in international
trade; and
WHEREAS, a study by the Federal Highway Administration in 1999 found that over the
entire 1700-mile length of Interstate 35 from Mexico to Canada, the highest vehicle counts,
the most traffic fatalities, the worst congestion, the lowest levels of service, and the lowest
average speed-per-mile were to be found in the Austin-San Antonio Corridor; and
WHEREAS, a freight rail line owned by Union Pacific directly parallels Interstate 35
through the most congested portion of the Austin-San Antonio Corridor and was
constructed over 120 years ago and currently has nearly 200 at-grade crossings through
the Corridor that represent congestion, public safety, and hazardous materials risks within
heavily populated areas of the Corridor; and
Resolution No. 10 11{0 -
Rail Relocation and Improvement
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WHEREAS, freight rail car traffic through the Corridor has doubled since the passage of
NAFTA; and
WHEREAS, the Texas Department of Transportation estimates that freight-movement
trucking is increasing nationwide by 2% per year, increasing by 6% per year statewide, but
increasing by 15% per year in the Austin-San Antonio Corridor; and
WHEREAS, both Austin and San Antonio are in danger of becoming names as 'non-
attainment' areas under the Federal air quality standards, and
WHEREAS, both Austin and San Antonio have endorsed local policies directed at
reducing carbon emissions related to both air quality and global warming; and
WHEREAS, the Legislature of the State of Texas has passed and the public has approved
by election the constitutional amendment creating the Texas Rail Relocation and
Improvement Fund; and
WHEREAS, $200 million appropriated annually to the Texas Rail Relocation and
Improvement Fund could be used to create a total bonded funding capacity for the Fund
of at least $2 billion over the next decade; and
WHEREAS, the annual appropriation to the Texas Rail Relocation and Improvement Fund
should come from a source other than Fund 6 (gas tax revenues constitutionally dedicated
to highways); and
WHEREAS, the Texas Rail Relocation and Improvement Fund could be used throughout
the State to relieve traffic congestion, improve freight movement mobility, remove
hazardous materials from the heavily-populated areas of urban Texas, and thus improve
the economy and quality of life in Texas; and
WHEREAS, that the City Council of the City of Georgetown respectfully requests that the
State Legislature and the Governor of Texas appropriate $200 million annually to the
Texas Rail Relocation and Improvement Fund during the 2009 regular session and
subsequent sessions of the Texas Legislature.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
GEORGETOWN, TEXAS, THAT:
Resolution No. i _Q
a
Rail Relocation and Improvement
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SECTION 1. The facts and recitations contained in the preamble of this resolution
are hereby found and declared to be true and correct, and are incorporated by reference
herein and expressly made a part hereof, as if copied verbatim.
SECTION 2. This resolution shall be effective immediately upon adoption.
RESOLVED this 14th day of October 14, 2008.
APPROVED: ATTEST:
Geor e Garver, Mayor Sandra D. Lee, City Secretary
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
Patricia E. Carls
Carls, McDonald & Dalrymple, L.L.P.
City Attorney
Resolution No. loleloov
Rail Relocation and Improvement
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