May TxDOT Highway Letting Dates

The Texas Department of Transportation has scheduled its next highway letting for May 11 & 12. Eighty-two projects are approved to be let with an estimated total of $325,594,756.

A TxDOT report in February said projects may be added, advanced or delayed as deemed necessary.

Commission Offers Rules to Speed Transportation Construction

The Texas Transportation Commission is moving to use one of its newly gained financing tools to expand highway infrastructure in the state.

The five-member panel recently proposed rules allowing the Texas Department of Transportation to use the "pass-through toll."

TxDOT officials say the proposed rules would allow the department to enter into agreements with public or private entities and to provide payments to those entities that build, maintain or operate transportation facilities in the state's highway system.

Officials said the pass-through toll is actually a fee the state pays per vehicle or per vehicle-mile to local governments or local entities that have taken on the burden of financing road improvements. Individual motorists do not pay a toll for using the roadway. Instead, the charge for use of the road is "passed through" to the state.

Commission members said they see the proposed rules as a way to speed construction of needed projects that otherwise might be years away from receiving funding.

TxDOT Enlists URS Corp. to Provide Bridge Design Services

The Texas Department of Transportation has retained the URS Corp., headquartered in San Francisco, to provide on-call bridge design services throughout the state for TxDOT's central bridge division.

An initial design will be that of a fiber-reinforced polymer bridge as part of a Federal Highway Works Administration project in Refugio County (just outside Corpus Christi). The replacement of a bridge on FM 1684 proposes to use pultruded fiber reinforced polymer beams and a fiber-reinforced polymer deck.

Other projects URS could be called upon to assist TxDOT include preparation of engineering drawings for overpasses and underpasses and bridge widening.

Governor Calls Hydrogen Fuel Cell Major Step in Innovative Energy Solutions

The first-phase installation of a single fuel cell that will convert hydrogen to electricity recently took place at the Dow manufacturing facility in Freeport. U.S. Secretary of Energy Spence Abraham joined Gov. Rick Perry in "throwing the switch" to bring the fuel cell to life.

"Texas has long been known as the nation's largest energy producer, but we are equally proud of our distinction as the nation's leading energy innovator," Perry said in a statement. "Now Texas is at the forefront of the development of fuel-cell technology, which is a cleaner, greener source of energy."

The event marked the largest fuel-cell transaction between Dow and partner General Motors. The initial hydrogen fuel cell will convert hydrogen into 75 KW of electricity, or enough power for 60 homes for one year. Ultimately, fuel cells from GM could generate 35 MW of power from hydrogen for Dow, equivalent to electricity for 25,000 homes.

Federal Cap May Benefit Private Investors in Water and Wastewater Treatment

A recently published document by the American Society of Civil Engineers rating U.S. water and wastewater systems a "D" has increased attention to the nation's water needs and infrastructure. In response, the San Antonio office of Frost & Sullivan published a report showing that revenues in the industry totaled $2.03 billion in 2002 and are projected to reach $2.67 billion by 2006.

"Aging infrastructure is driving growth of the repair and replacement market, while numerous regulatory constraints create opportunities for continual upgrades and updates in treatment technologies," said Usha Srinivasan, Frost & Sullivan consulting analyst.

Frost & Sullivan predicts that the expansion of existing treatment plants is likely, and that few new drinking water systems are currently being built.

The firm also said that an increase in water privatization may result from a recent cap on federal funding that is leading some small- and medium-sized municipalities to seek operational and financial support from private investors.

"This presents a tremendous opportunity for those companies capable of financing and providing operation and maintenance services to attend to the repair, rehabilitation, expansion and upgrading of the water utilities," Srinivasan said.

Lubbock Flood Management Project Employed HOBAS Pipe

Construction of the South Central Drainage System Project, a flood-management project, was recently completed in Lubbock, nine months ahead of schedule.

Construction began in July 2001 on the $36 million system, which included more than 10,000 ft. of HOBAS centrifugally cast, fiberglass reinforced, polymer mortar pipe ranging from 24 in. to 72 in. in diameter at depths of more than 50 ft.

The Lubbock-based engineering firm of Parkhill Smith & Cooper Inc. designed the system, which is expected to decrease the volume and duration of city street flooding.

The project's installation subcontractor, Southland Contracting Inc. of Fort Worth, has more than 10 years experience using HOBAS pipes in a variety of installations.