Earlier this month, the TIMED Program sold $1.1 billion in bonds. That’s billion….with a B. That’s a lot of money we can use to build TIMED roads and bridges.
The TIMED Program began with a boost from a bond sale back in 1990. From there, projects were funded as the $0.04 per gallon TIMED gas and special fuels tax was collected. Needless to say, it can take a long time for four pennies to add up in the bank and be available to fund design, right-of-way acquisition and construction of a highway.
In 2003, the TIMED Program was fully converted to a bond-financed program. By allowing the sale of bonds, the state of Louisiana accelerated the TIMED Program by 19+ years. Bonds are a way for the state to borrow money. Just like you and I borrow money to buy houses, cars, furniture, college educations – the TIMED Program needed to borrow money to have enough funding to build all of the TIMED projects more quickly. Imagine if we all had to save our pennies and have 100% of the funding necessary before we could build a house, buy a car or go to college?? For most of us, that day would take forever to get here. Same concept applies to TIMED.
TIMED bonds are seen as a good investment by institutional and private investors because they are lower risk (than say stocks), have a guaranteed rate of return, include tax benefits and are secured by the Louisiana gasoline taxes, so investors know they will be paid back. Since 2003, Louisiana has sold more than $1.8 billion (again, billion with a “B”) in bonds. This debt has enabled the Program to complete 79 miles of roadway widening and start widening an additional 141 miles of TIMED roads.
The recent $1.1 billion in bond revenue will allow for $800 million in new construction lettings to occur in fiscal year 2007. This bond revenue is also allowing for the construction progress on the widening of the Huey P. Long Bridge in Jefferson Parish and the progress on the new John James Audubon Mississippi River Bridge north of Baton Rouge. This funding will also help pay for engineering, utility relocation and right-of-acquisitions on 155 additional miles of TIMED roadways and on the new high-level Florida Avenue Bridge in New Orleans East.
So, what does $1.1 billion buy? New and improved transportation corridors for Louisiana. New and improved evacuation routes for Louisiana. New and improved economic development opportunities for Louisiana.
If you build it, they will come……is a mantra we can apply to the TIMED Program. Without improved transportation and the ability to move goods and people throughout a state, new business can not thrive. Just yesterday, Governor Blanco announced that JELD-WEN, the world's largest manufacturer of reliable windows and doors, will build a door facings plant in Winn Parish. Well, TIMED just so happens to be investing more than $200 million in widening the U.S. 167 corridor in Winn Parish. TIMED can’t take all the credit, but without reliable transportation access, JELD-WEN would have a hard time delivering those door facings to the rest of the world!
That’s the last ten minutes of my day. Join me again soon to see what else TIMED is doing for our state.
Dana
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