Not too late to stop building state’s toll roads to nowhere
The Florida Legislature took the unusual step of passing a bill that mandates the building of three toll roads. SB 7068 loosely identifies the routes, creates three separate task forces to study and advise on the routes and provides a timeline to start construction and to complete the roads.
Usually routes are studied, ridership studies are conducted, costs are estimated, and mitigation is considered before a road is funded or approved.
After my last column on the three toll roads, I heard from so many Floridians who wanted to learn more about these roads and how they can get involved to stop them or to have a say in the route.
Let’s start with the three corridors and the corresponding task forces. You can look them up online by going to www.floridamcores.com. (M-CORES stands for Multi-Use Corridors of Regional Economic Significance.)
The Southwest-Central Florida Connector Task Force’s assigned toll road would connect Collier County to Polk County. This is a project that wealthy land barons have been pushing for over a decade under the name Heartland Parkway. The task force has 47 members. By visiting the Florida Department of Transportation website, you can look up task force members, use its interactive map and see upcoming events.
It has upcoming open houses on Jan. 9 and Jan. 30, when you can learn more or get your comments on the record. This toll road could affect residents in nine rural counties in Southwest Florida. A feasibility study performed a few years ago did not show this to be a beneficial project in terms of tolls collected and usage.
This task force/project has a Facebook page that you can “like” to follow their activities: @mcores.southwest.central.
The Northern Turnpike Connector Task Force is responsible for a route connecting the northern terminus of the Florida Turnpike to the existing Suncoast Parkway to the northwest. This task force has 39 members and could affect Floridians in four counties — Citrus, Levy, Marion and Sumter.
It has several upcoming open houses that the public can attend — on Dec. 19, Jan. 28, and Jan. 30. You can keep up with its events and updates on its Facebook page: @mcores.northern.turnpike.
The third is the Suncoast Connector Task Force, whose mission is to extend the Suncoast Parkway from Citrus County to Jefferson County at or near the Georgia state line. Oddly, there has been no coordination with Georgia officials about what happens at the state line.
This toll road project, whose task force has 41 members, could affect eight primarily rural counties: Citrus, Dixie, Gilchrist, Jefferson, Lafayette, Levy, Madison and Taylor.
The task force has several upcoming events that are open to the public on Dec. 19, Jan. 23, Jan. 28 and Jan. 30.
You can sign up to get on its distribution list and use its interactive map to play with possible routes. Its Facebook page can be found at @mcores.suncoast.
I mentioned that SB 7068 was unusual in mandating roads before any specific routes were outlined, land was acquired, costs were determined, and ridership was estimated.
The bill required these task forces, which held their first meeting on Aug. 27, to issue a report by Oct. 1, 2020. Construction of the projects must begin no later than Dec. 31, 2022, and open to traffic no later than Dec. 31, 2030.
If this sounds impractical and arbitrary — it is. It also makes one wonder if the routes have been predetermined and if landowners have been identified and in preliminary negotiations with the Florida Department of Transportation, with the public task forces just for show.
To look up the bill language or the bill analysis to understand the scope of the projects better, you can go to www.FLSenate.gov and enter the bill number CS/SB 7068.
I’ve also been asked whom concerned Floridians may call or contact to stop the project.
You can look up your Florida House members at www.myfloridahouse.gov. You can also look up the key players on transportation and funding issues at the same link for Chairman of Appropriations Committee Travis Cummings, Chairman of Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee Jay Trumbull, Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman Brad Drake and, of course, Speaker of the House Jose Oliva.
You can look up your senators at www.FLSenate.gov, along with that chamber’s key members on transportation and funding. Appropriations Chair Rob Bradley, Transportation Appropriations Chair Travis Hutson and Infrastructure Chairman Tom Lee. The president of the Florida Senate, Bill Galvano, is the main architect of the bill.
You can also register your thoughts and concerns with Gov. Ron DeSantis through www.MyFlorida.com or by phone at 850-488-7146.
Last, more than 50 nonprofit and private entities recently formed the No Roads to Ruin Coalition to educate and advocate for stopping legislation that they view as bad for our health, bad for our economy, bad for our wildlife, bad government, bad policy, bad for our rural communities and bad for our future. Its Facebook page is @noroadstoruin.
It may seem like it’s too late to stop this irresponsible plan to force unneeded toll roads on us, but informed voters making their voices heard is a very powerful weapon. Use it.