Arsenal kicks off the season in new home - Steer Davies Gleave

Wide horizons in TexasOne thing we have noticed while workingacross the United States and Canada, isthat out in Texas, where we are involved inthe Transport PPP market, they like to dothings bigger and better than anyone else.The Department of Transport in the statecapital in Austin has recognised – ashave many other states – that the needfor transport infrastructure continues togrow, and that the tax base availablefor financing development cannot bestretched to meet all the calls placedupon it. Across the US, this has resultedin new (or renewed) interest in the privatefinancing of new toll roads or toll lanesand the sale/lease of existing facilities.What cash-strapped state finance directordoesn’t look up with interest at the $1.8bnraised by Chicago through the lease ofthe Chicago Skyway or the $3.8bn raisedby Indiana with the Indiana Toll Road?What state governor (or gubernatorialcandidate) isn’t tempted to look at theirown assets – quickly gauging the politicalacceptability of concessioning state assets?In Texas, they are taking a different route,and as with most things in the state, it’sbig! While also developing a programme ofindividual toll road/managed lane projects,under the very energetic leadership ofPhil Russell, the Texas Department ofTransportation has drawn up a programmeof Trans Texas Corridors (TTC) – a 4,000-mile network of superhighways thatwill incorporate tolled and untolledexpressways, high speed and conventionalpassenger and freight railroads, andwater and power supply lines. At the sametime, legislation has been enacted whichallows the Department to appoint sectorconsortia as partners under ComprehensiveDevelopment Agreements (CDA); thesepartners will have the responsibility for thelong-term development of these corridors.Steer Davies Gleave has worked withZachry Construction over the past two years,exploring PPP transport opportunities.Identifying the opportunities in this market,Zachry established a subsidiary, ZAI, withthe remit to develop concession work,initially in Texas and then more widelyacross the country. ZAI, in partnershipwith Cintra, has already won the CDA forthe first corridor, the TTC-35. Since then,ZAI has submitted bids for a number offurther schemes – both alone and withACS/Dragados. The team has prequalifiedfor the IH635 in Dallas – and is awaiting aresponse on bids for the SH161, anothertoll road in the Dallas area, and thesecond of the TTC projects, the TTC-69.The challenges facing the team indeveloping business models for theseschemes are substantial. Most areshared by all infrastructure developmentwherever in the world, but some areunique – the existing urban road networkis very extensive, the distances to becovered across Texas are enormous,and Texan drivers don’t like payingtolls. Looks like there could still bea ‘Wild West’ out there to be tamed.For more information contact:Charles Russellt +44 (0)20 7919 8500e charles.russell@sdgworld.net