TRAFFIC

Dallas County may create toll agency
Dallas County commissioners are considering eying a plan that would give them the same legal powers as the North Texas Tollway Authority, including the right to issue bonds guaranteed by future toll traffic and to enter into long-term contracts with private toll firms.

Texas requiring course for aspiring drivers 18 to 24
The state-mandated six-hour course, which costs $35 to $100 based on a check of several driving schools, will cover topics such as rules of the road, highway signs, drunken driving and insurance. Students must pass a written test at the end of the course, in addition to DPS' standard driving-skills exam, before they can receive a license.

Toll agency approves plan for Highway 161
The North Texas Tollway Authority's decision Friday to formally accept State Highway 161 into its growing network of paid highways could reshape how the fastest-growing metropolitan area in America builds – and pays for – the roads North Texas leaders say are needed so badly.

Transportation blog: NTTA to vote today on taking up State Highway 161 project
The vote on whether to actually undertake the project comes after the Texas Transportation Commission on Wednesday formally agreed to extend NTTA a line of credit that will act as a guarantee to creditors in the event that traffic on 161 is so low that the authority cannot make its debt payments.

Transportation blog: $10 million fix may not be enough to hasten DART Orange Line
DART spokesman Morgan Lyons said this morning that the transit agency is not certain it can meet its deadline for the Orange Line service to Irving, even if TxDOT completes its utility relocation work on time.