Opponents of a plan to build a Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC) road and rail system from Mexico to Oklahoma received welcome news this week, as Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) officials announced their strategy would no longer include building new highway routes southwest of Houston, a plan that would have annexed huge tracts of private land.

The $184 billion TTC project originally called for a 4,000-mile network of transportation corridors, 1,200 feet wide, to be built across Texas. The plan would have taken about a half million agricultural acres out of private hands, leading to a maelstrom of objections from Texas landowners.

But now TxDOT executive Director Amadeo Saenz says plans have changed. In a conference call with reporters he said TxDOT "had narrowed the study area for TTC I-69" and that the department "is going to be considering only existing highway" routes, and "any area that is not along an existing highway will not be considered."

"This is great news for landowners," said John Means, president of the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association. "TSCRA appreciates the agency's decision to not build the toll roads through rural lands that would threaten the private property rights of many of our members."

The TxDOT website states that "the preliminary basis for this decision centers on the review of nearly 28,000 public comments made" on the issue. Saenz added that 47 town hall meetings with Texas residents had further influenced the decision.

Brehham, Tex., State Rep. Lois W. Kolkhorst, who joined in the battle to protect rural lands from the project, told The Huntsville Item, "The real heroes who deserve the credit here are the constituents. I want to thank the thousands of people who joined me in fighting the I-69 TTC for the past 5 years, writing letters, calling and attending meetings to make their voices heard."

(Story continues below)

Though opponents of the TTC celebrate victory in this battle, they have been quick to point out that the war is not over.

"This is good news about a retreat from the corridor," Kolkhorst said, "but the controversy over how we pay for our roads will continue. We need to stay strong against the forces out there who want to sell off our highway infrastructure to foreign sources."

"This is a great first step," said Kenneth Dierschke, president of the Texas Farm Bureau. "But we must continue to hold TxDOT's feet to the fire during the next legislative session to ensure they keep these promises."

David Stall of the anti-TTC group CorridorWatch is also wary of crying victory too soon. Speaking of TxDOT, Stall told a Houston Community Newspaper, "They've never taken the public's input into consideration before."

Part of the concern is that the announcement to limit the TTC's scope only included project proposals south and west of Houston. The announcement did not mention plans for the northern I-35 corridor.

"We want (Saenz) to send the same letter to the Federal Highway Administration for TTC I-35 that he sent about I-69," Stall said. "There was as much public input about I-35 as there was about 69."

Stall also worries that TxDOT was motivated largely by "financial ability and political expediency," warning, "As soon as it becomes fiscally viable, it will come back."

For now, landowners in southwestern Texas are breathing a sigh of relief and preparing for future battles if necessary.

Last year Amy Klein, a member of CorridorWatch, quoted Stall in the Gainesville Daily Register with words that are just as meaningful now to the group as they were then. "You eat an elephant one bite at a time," she quoted. Then she added, "I think we're slowly devouring this elephant."

 

---

Related offers:

'The Late Great USA': Jerome Corsi exposes the coming merger with Mexico and Canada

Get Tom Tancredo's new book, "In Mortal Danger," from the people who published it – WND Books.

The master plan to rule the world exposed

Shocking, connect-the-dots expos? of globalist plot

 

---

Previous stories:

Feds threaten Texas over superhighway funds plan

NAFTA Superhighway hits bump in road

Houston: The Wal-Mart of North American Union

Commerce chief pushes for 'North American integration'

Idaho lawmakers want out of SPP

Texas Ports plan for Chinese containers

'Don't pave our land' Farm Bureau pleads

Lawmaker battles Trans-Texas Corridor

House resolution opposes North American Union

U.S. parkway leased to Aussie firm

Residents of planned union to be 'North Americanists'

Official calls super highway 'urban legend'

10 most underreported stories of 2006

PREMEDITATED MERGER

Congressman battles North Americanization

North American Union leader says merger just crisis away

Analysts: Dollar collapse would result in 'amero'

U.S. dollar facing imminent collapse?

London stock trader urges move to 'amero'

'Bush doesn't think America should be an actual place'

Mexico ambassador: We need N. American Union in 8 years

Congressman: Superhighway about North American Union

'North American Union' major '08 issue?

Resolution seeks to head off union with Mexico, Canada

Documents reveal 'shadow government'

Tancredo: Halt 'Security and Prosperity Partnership'

North American Union threat gets attention of congressmen

Top U.S. official chaired N. American confab panel

N. American students trained for 'merger'

North American confab 'undermines' democracy

Attendance list North American forum

North American Forum agenda

North American merger topic of secret confab

Feds finally release info on 'superstate'

Senator ditches bill tied to 'superstate'

Congressman presses on 'superstate' plan

Feds stonewalling on 'super state' plan?

Cornyn wants U.S. taxpayers to fund Mexican development

No EU in U.S.

Trans-Texas Corridor paved with campaign contributions?

U.S.-Mexico merger opposition intensifies

More evidence of Mexican trucks coming to U.S.

Docs reveal plan for Mexican trucks in U.S.

Kansas City customs port considered Mexican soil?

Tancredo confronts 'superstate' effort

Bush sneaking North American superstate without oversight?