THROUGHOUT CENTRAL

FLORIDA, OUR AREA FACES

INCREASED CHALLENGES IN

GETTING FROM POINT A TO

POINT B. TRANSPORTATION

REMAINS A MAIN TOPIC OF

INTEREST AND CONCERN.

WE'LL HEAR TODAY WHAT IS

BEING DONE TO ADDRESS

THESE ISSUES.

>>PEOPLE WONT USE IT

UNLESS IT'S CONVENIENT,

UNLESS IT CONNECTS, UNLESS

IT GETS THEM CONVENIENTLY

WHERE THEY WANT TO GO.

WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE THAT

HAPPEN.

>>WE'LL TALK ABOUT

TRANSPORTATION ISSUES WITH

CONGRESSMAN JOHN MICA,

NEXT ON METRO CENTER

OUTLOOK.

>>HELLO, I'M DIANE TREES.

MAJOR IMPROVEMENTS TO

INTERSTATE 4 THROUGH

DOWNTOWN ORLANDO, SUN

RAIL, AIRPORT EXPANSION.

ALL ARE HOT BUTTON ISSUES

RIGHT NOW. CENTRAL FLORIDA

HAS AN AGGRESSIVE PLAN TO

DEAL WITH ALL OF OUR

TRANSPORTATION ISSUES.

JOINING US TODAY IS UNITED

STATES REPRESENTATIVE JOHN

MICA. HE'S REPRESENTED

FLORIDA SEVENTH DISTRICT

IN WASHINGTON D.C. SINCE

1993 AND IS THE FORMER

CHAIRMAN OF THE HOUSE

TRANSPORTATION COMMITY.

WELCOME.

>>GOOD TO BE WITH YOU

DIANE.

>>I UNDERSTAND THAT IT

SEEMS THAT WHENEVER YOU

TRAVEL I-4 NOW IT'S

CONGESTED NO MATTER WHAT

TIME. HOW HAVE WE GOTTEN

TO THIS POINT?

>>WELL, CENTRAL FLORIDA

KEEPS GROWING. I THINK

AFTER THE WEATHER WE'VE

HAD THIS WINTER WE'RE

GOING TO SEE ANOTHER UP

SERGE, BUT PEOPLE JUST

KEEP MOVING HERE. IT'S A

VERY ATTRACTIVE PLACE TO

LIVE, WORK, AND RETIRE.

>>THE I-4 EXPANSION

PROJECT IS THE LARGEST

INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT IN

THE HISTORY OF CENTRAL

FLORIDA. CAN YOU TALK A

LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE SCOPE

OF THE PROJECT AND THE

TIME FRAME?

>>WELL, WHAT WE'RE GOING

TO DO IS ADD SOME LANES.

IN ORDER TO PAY FOR THOSE

LANES, WILL BE TOLLS. AND

THE MONEY WILL GO TO PAY

OFF BOTH THE CONSTRUCTION

AND THEN EVENTUALLY THE

BONDED INDEBTEDNESS. THE

GOOD NEWS IS THAT THE FREE

LANES THAT BOTH IN CENTRAL

AND ACROSS THE UNITED

STATES WILL CONTINUE TO BE

FREE UNDER THE PROVISIONS

OF THE LAW THAT I PASSED.

BUT WE'LL HAVE 20 MILES OF

ROADS EXPANDED EXPRESS

LANES AND START DOWN AT

KIRKMAN AND GO ALL THE WAY

UP TO 434. AND

CONSTRUCTION SHOULD START

SOMETIME IN LATE 2014

WE'RE HOPING.

>>COMING VERY SOON THEN.

>>YES.

>>NOW WITH THE EXPRESS

LANES, WHY ADD EXPRESS

TOLL LANES INSTEAD OF JUST

ADDING MORE CONVENTIONAL

LANES TO THE HIGHWAY? IS

THAT A STRATEGY INVOLVED

THERE?

>>THE MAIN THING IS PAYING

FOR IT. RIGHT NOW WE'VE

TAKEN THE HIGHWAY TRUST

FUND. 18.4 CENTS PER

GALLON. CARS HAVE BEEN

DRIVING FURTHER AND PAYING

LESS BECAUSE THE AVERAGE

MILAGE A CAR ACHIEVES WITH

ONE GALLON OF GASOLINE IS

NOW ABOUT 24 MILES UP FROM

15 OR 16. SO ACTUALLY

YOU'RE DRIVING MORE AND

MOST OF THE MONEY IS JUST

USED NOW AND COVERS BASIC

MAINTENANCE. BUT TO DO NEW

CONSTRUCTION AND TO PAY

FOR IT, THE TOLL LANES

WILL BE INSTALLED, BUT THE

FREE LANES, BOTH IN

CENTRAL FLORIDA, YEARS AGO

I PUT A RESTRICTION ON

TOLLING FREE LANES IN

CENTRAL FLORIDA; EXPANDED

THAT FOR NOT ONLY CENTRAL

FLORIDA BUT FOR THE WHOLE

COUNTRY. SO FOLKS CAN DO

THIS BUT THE MONEY HAS TWO

REQUIREMENTS. ONE, TO GO,

IF IT'S TOLLED, INTO NEW

CAPACITY. OR TWO, TO PAY

OFF THE INDEBTEDNESS SO

EVENTUALLY THEY CAN BE

FREE TOO. THE GOOD NEWS

FOR THE FOLKS IN THE FREE

LANES IS THAT IT WILL TAKE

SOME OF THE PRESSURE OFF

OF THEM. WHERE WE'VE DONE

THIS THE TRAFFIC MOVES

TWICE AS FAST.

>>SO THERE ARE MODELS

AROUND THE COUNTRY THAT

YOU LOOKED AT THAT HAVE

BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL IN

THE PAST? I UNDERSTAND

THAT THERE IS GOING TO BE

VARIABLE PRICING FOR THE

TOLLS. WHAT DOES THAT

ENTAIL AND MEAN TO

PASSENGERS?

>>WHEN CONGESTION THE

PRICE WILL BE HIGHER. SOME

OF THESE, AND I DON'T KNOW

THEIR TOLL STRUCTURE,

SOMETIMES IT'S AS LOW AS

25 CENTS, SOME OF THE

OTHER ONES SOMETIMES THEY

LIFT THE TOLLS. BUT THAT'S

UP TO HOW THEY PRICE IT

AND PRICE CONGESTION

PRICING IS THE NEW WAY TO

GO.

>>NOW LETS TALK A LITTLE

BIT ABOUT THE PUBLIC

PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP THAT

WAS ESTABLISHED TO FUND

THIS. CAN YOU TELL US

ABOUT THAT?

>>WELL THAT'S AGAIN THE

PROJECT IS $2.2 BILLION

DOLLARS. IF WE HAD WAITED

FOR PUBLIC MONEY TO BE

AVAILABLE, IT'D BE AT

LEAST EIGHT MORE YEARS. SO

THIS WAY WE CAN ADVANCE

THE PROJECT, THOSE WHO USE

IT WILL PAY FOR IT, THE

FREE LANES WILL GET THE

ADVANTAGE OF TAKING SOME

OF THE PRESSURE OFF OF

THOSE LANES AND THOSE THAT

CAN PAY FOR IT AND USE IT

WILL PAY. SO THE PRIVATE

SECTOR IS RAISING $1.2

BILLION DOLLARS IN CAPITAL

TOWARDS THE PROJECT AND

WE'LL HAVE IT SOONER

RATHER THAN LATER.

>>SO THOSE ARE PRETTY GOOD

BENEFITS THEN FOR ALL

AROUND?

>>UH, VERY GOOD. AND IT

DOES TAKE SOME OF THE

PRESSURE OFF AND IT'S A

MODEL FOR THE REST OF THE

COUNTRY. SINCE THE TRUST

FUND IS BASICALLY BROKE,

AGAIN LESS MONEY COMING IN

THAN WE'RE SPENDING, SO

YOU'VE GOT TO FIND SOME

WAY TO ADD NEW CAPACITY

AND PAY FOR IT

RESPONSIBLY.

>>WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR

ADVICE FOR TRAVELERS THAT

ARE GOING TO BE COMMUTING

ALONG THE HIGHWAY WHEN

IT'S BEING CONSTRUCTED?

>>I-4'S ALREADY LIKE A

PARKING LOT, SO I THINK

EXPECT AN EVEN BIGGER

PARKING LOT. THIS IS GOING

TO TAKE A NUMBER OF YEARS.

IT WILL BE AT LEAST 2020

BEFORE IT'S DONE. I THINK

THERE'S A SIX YEAR

CONSTRUCTION. THE GOOD

NEWS IS THAT SUN RAIL IS

OPENING THIS YEAR IN MAY

AND THEY WILL HAVE A FIXED

TRANSIT SYSTEM, AND THAT

TRAIN WILL BE AT EVERY

STATION ON PREDICTABLE

TIME AND HOPEFULLY

CONNECTED WITH BUSES OR

DOWNTOWN LYNX LIMO. UH,

GET TO THE AIRPORT, GET TO

OTHER PLACES ON A

PREDICTABLE SCHEDULE. THE

PROBLEM WE'VE HAD EVEN

ADDING BUSES ON THE

INTERSTATE WHICH ARE VERY

EXPENSIVE TO RUN, ONLY

HANDLE 50 PEOPLE, 1

DRIVER. THIS CAN CARRY 200

OR 2,000 OR AS MANY AS

18,000 PEOPLE IN AN HOUR

ON THAT LITTLE TINY TRACK

AND NOT DISRUPT ANYONE AND

GET THERE ON TIME.

>>SO IT'S PERFECT TIMING

FOR THIS TO COME ALONG

WITH THE CONSTRUCTION. NOW

YOU MENTIONED 2020 FOR IT

TO BE DONE. I WAS READING

THAT THERE WERE TWO

PHASES, A SIX YEAR PLAN

AND THEN ANOTHER, IS THAT

CORRECT?

>>WELL THIS IS ONLY GOING

FROM KIRKMAN ROAD, IN THE

SOUTH AROUND THE WEST. UP

TO 434. WE REALLY NEED TO

GET ACROSS TO VOLUSIA

COUNTY AND GO ACROSS THE

ST. JOHNS RIVER BRIDGE.

THEN WE NEED TO GO OUT TO

192. SO I'M TRYING TO

ADVANCE THE PLANNING. AND

THEY'RE DOING SOME OF THAT

NOW FOR THOSE NEXT PHASES

CAUSE THIS IS ONLY A 20

MILE, VERY EXPENSIVE,

QUARTER THROUGH

METROPOLITAN ORLANDO.

WE'VE GOT MUCH MORE TO DO.

>>WELL IN THE CONGESTION

IN THAT AREA IS FIERCE. SO

I THINK EVEN THOUGH I

DON'T WANT TO SEE IT

STARTED, PROBABLY THE

BETTER ONCE IT GETS GOING

FOR US.

>>YES.

>>LET'S TALK ABOUT ANOTHER

TRANSPORTATION MODE. AND

YOU MENTIONED THE SUN RAIL

A PART OF THIS. YOU'VE

BEEN A CHAMPION FOR THIS