The co-chairs of the Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee want to know more about the Mid-Currituck Bridge toll project before the N.C. Turnpike Authority moves forward with it. In a letter to Turnpike Authority Executive Director David Joyner, they ask that the agency not proceed with the “commercial close” of the project until it answers a series of questions. The lawmakers also asked authority officials to appear before the committee this fall to discuss project details. The Mid-Currituck Bridge is a proposed 7-mile toll road between U.S. 158 on the Currituck County mainland and N.C. 12 on the Outer Banks. “The chairs have concerns about the terms of the agreement for the project, the financial feasibility of the project and the financial liability the state may be incurring as the NC Turnpike Authority considers the finance plan for this project,” according to the July 26 letter, which is signed by the four co-chairs of the committee.
Sen. Bill Rabon, R-Brunswick and a committee chair, said in an interview Wednesday that moving forward with project agreements could put state taxpayers on the hook for a large sum of money over many years during tough economic times. In the letter, lawmakers ask 18 different questions about the Mid-Currituck Bridge project, mainly focused on potential agreements with private partners, the cost of the project to the state and the potential impacts of a lawsuit challenging the project. According to the letter, the transportation officials want answers by Friday.
by Patrick Gannon
(WILMINGTON STAR-NEWS)
(8/02/12)
