41
may
2014
infrastructure
investor
Taylor-DeJongh said this public
financing made the “substantial pri-
vate contribution possible” from Cintra,
Meridiam Infrastructure, Dallas Police
and Fire Pension System and APG. The
Dallas pension was the first ever US
pension fund to invest directly in an
infrastructure project – and this deal
was its third (the first two having also
been Texas toll road projects alongside
Cintra and Meridiam).
The project will involve the recon-
struction of general lanes and the addi-
tion of managed toll lanes to double the
capacity of I-35W north of Fort Worth,
Texas. The proposed improvements to
IH 35W consist of the reconstruction of
general purpose lanes; the construction
of barrier-separated, managed toll/high
occupancy vehicle (HOV) and transit
lanes; the construction of managed lane
ramps; improvements to several inter-
changes; and the construction of front-
age roads and cross-street intersections.
The project will reconstruct more
than 12 miles of freeway and add man-
aged/transit lanes on I-35W in Tarrant
County immediately north of downtown
Fort Worth.
The managed lanes will be tolled
using a state-of-the-art Electronic Toll
Collection System (ETCS) that utilises
dynamic pricing to set variable toll
rates, according to demand, so that the
average speed on the managed lanes is
maintained at or above a contractually
mandated minimum speed of 50 miles
per hour.
In the words of the submission: “By
utilising a creative project structuring
solution and innovative financial instru-
ments, the transaction sets an excellent
example of yet another way that states,
private developers, and the federal
government are all working together
in developing innovative approaches
to deliver transportation infrastructure
in the United States.”
The notion of “interdependence”
struck a chord with the judges. If the US
is finally to realise its undoubted potential
as a PPPmarket, more ways will have to be
found to get the public and private sectors
cooperating optimally – as this particular
transaction clearly exemplified.
n
“A lot of new concepts and new
investors. Impressive.”
“It’s different and it’s complex. My only
question is whether it’s replicable – and
thus has a wider relevance for the
market – or whether it’s a one-off that
happens to fit the circumstances.”
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WHAT THE
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