IBTTA President and Executive Director of Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority Speaks Today at Governing Magazine’s Texas Leadership Forum

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, August 5, 2014
CONTACT: Kristofer Eisenla, LUNA+EISENLA media
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Mike Heiligenstein Participates in Panel Addressing Advancement of Public-Private Partnerships for Transportation Funding

WASHINGTON, DC – Mike Heiligenstein, Executive Director of the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority (CTRMA) and President of the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA), participated today in a panel at the Texas Leadership Forum sponsored by Governing Magazine.  The panel, “Changing Terrain:  Public Private Partnerships (P3s) and Transportation,” held this morning, featured Heiligenstein and with other transportation leaders discussing P3s as an alternative source of infrastructure financing and funding in Texas.

“We all know that infrastructure funding with public dollars will continue to be a challenge,” said Mike Heiligenstein, Executive Director of the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority and President of the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association.  “I’m honored to be a part of this panel exploring various aspects of public-private partnerships. Infrastructure investment comes in many shapes and sizes; there’s no one size fits all.”

Today’s panel, “Changing Terrain:  Public Private Partnerships and Transportation,” focused on the challenges and opportunities associated with this infrastructure investment strategy.  Additional items discussed during the panel, included:

• How to bring the financial resources of the private sector together with the needs of the public sector to deliver major projects;

• The development of an $834 million P3 in Texas to address issues with SH 183 in the Dallas area; and

• The critical analysis and sophisticated investment projections required to evaluate and negotiate potential P3 arrangements.

In January 2014, Mike Heiligenstein, Executive Director of the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority (CTRMA), Austin, Texas, began his year-long term as President of the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA), the worldwide association representing toll facility owners and operators and the businesses that serve them. 

Heiligenstein has been with the Mobility Authority since its inception in 2002 and oversaw the development of its initial project, the 183A toll road in Williamson County, which is one of the first projects in the country to transition to all-electronic, cashless toll collection. Before taking the helm at the Mobility Authority, Heiligenstein served the citizens of Williamson County for 23 years as a public official. Heiligenstein serves on the advisory board of the Texas A&M Transportation Institute, and on several other committees and working groups dealing with transportation issues.

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About IBTTA
The International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA) is the worldwide association for the owners and operators of toll facilities and the businesses that serve them. Founded in 1932, IBTTA has members in more than 20 countries on six continents. Through advocacy, thought leadership and education, members are implementing state-of-the-art, innovative user-based transportation financing solutions to address the critical infrastructure challenges of the 21st century. For more information, visit www.ibtta.org or join us on Twitter @IBTTA or #TollRoads.