Australian firm leases VIRGINIA toll road for 99 YEARS!

[Bluebear]

I assume that the $618 million will be refunded to the taxpayers that built it? Or reduce the Federal deficit? :eyes:

====

MELBOURNE, Asia in Focus - Tollway operator TRANSURBAN GROUP (ASX:TCL) has agreed to acquire a 99-year concession on the Pocahontas Parkway in Virginia in the United States. Total upfront funding for the road is $A815 million ($US618.87 million), and Transurban will contribute $A255 million ($US193.63 million) in equity to have 100 per cent control of the project.

* The Pocahontas Parkway is a 14 kilometre four-lane toll road southeast of the city of Richmond, linking the counties of Henrico and Chesterfield.

* The road provides a crossing of the James River and provides access to the Richmond International Airport.


http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2006/05/03/1635258.htm

[cantstandbush]

1. Wake me when it's over. nt

[Nikki Stone 1]

2. America for Sale: No more borders

Think the red-staters will get off their ass?

[The Wielding Truth]

3. That's just nuts. Of course they can't take it out of the country,but can

they stop anyone from using it? Doesn't it belong to the people. Can a well used public roads logically be owned by a business? If it's not well maintained and someone is hurt will the business cover the cost of damages? What a mess!

[bloom]

4. This is happening other places as well.

The toll road across Northern Indiana - 90.

I don't remember where all.

[oscar111]

6. RECOMMEND button

Outrageous.

it is a ripoff that need not exist. forced payment when none is needed.

it remindes me of the sell off for pennies on the dollar, of state refineries to oil tycoons in the eastern bloc of europe recently.

same pattern.

[oscar111]

7. RECOMMEND button

Outrageous.

it is a ripoff that need not exist. forced payment when none is needed.

it remindes me of the sell off for pennies on the dollar, of state refineries to oil tycoons in the eastern bloc of europe recently.

same pattern.

[pnorman]

5. Here's a more recent article that appeared on DU yesterday:

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2006/07/16/more_foreign_firms_invest_in_us_highways_bridges/

pnorman

[RB TexLa]

8. That article plays a little loose with the facts

"The Bush administration's plan to let a foreign company manage US ports met a storm of protest in February"


A foreign company was already running the ports. It was just that the one that was running it was white and the company was going to be sold to non-whites. That was a truly disgusting couple of months of American history.

[pnorman]

9. Not all that loose.

Although now retired, I'm still active on my union's BBS as well as on a few related listserves. My union is a sea-going union, and the members are much closer to such things than the average person. Still, when that news first surfaced in those venues, it came as a distinct shock. Admittedly, there was a racist/jingoist element to some of the "outrage" there, but the most ourtrage by far was about the "lapse" in security" --- ie: having a UAE-owned corporation get even peripheral access to harbor installations. And at a time when BushCo was cheerfully trashing the Constitution --- in the name of "security"! There's a shameless xenophobic (almost certainly closet-racist) Bush-lover on that BBS, and no surprise at all --- he staunchly DEFENDED that move!

pnorman
On edit: It was known to a few there, that some of the ports had been owned/managed by UK outfits, but a country that had such clear and demonstrable links to Al Quaida --- THAT was a hot button issue! We're also fully aware that virtually ALL of the old-time US-flag shipping companies --- APL, Lykes, Sealand, Farrell, etc. --- are owned by foreign companies. That extends to some who manage government vessels, although they use US citizen fronts.

pnorman