Last year while I was living temporarily in Corpus Christi, I had occassions to travel back and forth to Dallas and I posted on this board about how heavy the traffic was between San Antonia and Austin on I-35, part of the proposed North American Corridor from Mexico to Canada. (The recent bridge collapse in Minnesota over I-35 sparked lively discussions about this "corridor" on the net).

At that time (last year), I wondered how on earth they were ever going to widen the existing stretch of highway (I-35) from San Antonia to Austin because it is nearly jam packed wall to wall businesses all the way on both sides, and the traffic is already near capacity. Trying to buy up all the valuable real estate along that path (to widen the highway) would be prohibitively costly and would cause a backlash of a near rebellious level.

I heard an answer to my puzzlement on the 'net the other day, by someone called Dr. Corsey. He said that he had seen maps of the corridor and that they planned on BYPASSING San Antonio all the way on past Dallas with a totally NEW superwide highway, and that the existing I-35 would fall by the way as the current State highway 77 has done over the last 50 years (believe it or not, I travelled over highway 77 from the valley to Dallas many many times in the 50's and 60's as that was the ONLY way to get there - now it is a side road rarely used and poorly maintained for some lengthy stretches).

The most disturbing part of what Dr. Corsey said was how they plan on acquiring the necessary right-of-way for this new corridor - by relying on the supreme court ruling last year that gave imminent domain over to PRIVATE firms wanting to develope land owned by individuals (even those properties that have been in a family for generations and are suppossedly owned "outright"). The new corridor is being financed, and tolls will be collected by, a Spanish firm that is NOT PART of the US or Texas governemnt. All those Texas farmers and home-owners unlucky enough to be in the way will be given 31 days to either accept the pittance that will be offered for their land, or see it be siezed by that newly interpretted immenent domain ruling.

A neighbor of mine said he also saw such a map and that the new corridor was to be somewhat EAST of the existing I-35 and that, as far as anyone I know about, nothing has been done about it so far, but, when they finally decide to get started, those in the way will have no choice but to just pack up and move elsewhere.

I don't like alarmists thinking, but, this has a ring of truth to it - after I heard what happened last year to those elderly folks in new england who had their property (of many generations) forcebly taken from them by this new immenent domain ruling, I could only imagine what a tragedy this would be for the rest of us should it become a commonplace thing. I just never dreamed it would happen so soon and so close to home.

If anyone has any news about this, please post. I do not see any outcry over it, but, then, with so many outrageous things happening these days, this might be viewed as just another ho-hum instance of tyranny that is becoming commonplace in this land.