Brisa group scores highest in qualifications for concession of Alligator Alley TR Florida

A Brisa, CCR, JPMorgan team titled A2 Transportation Partners (A2TP) topped the score in a rating of firms qualifications for the Alligator Alley toll concession in Florida. A2TP was followed by Cintra-led team (Everglades Parkway Partners) and Atlantia the big Italian motorway operator previously named Autostrade. Brisa is the leading toll motorway operator in Portugal and CCR in Brazil. They combined to take over the Northwest Parkway in the Denver area under a longterm concession earlier this year.

Others invited to bid include:

- Global Via (a joint venture of Spain-based roadbuilder and operator FCC and the Caja Madrid bank) and Lehman Bros of NYC

- OHL Concessiones a Spanish operator and Carlyle Group the US fund under the name Alligator Alley Development Partners

- Vinci Concessions, France-based, a major owner of Cofiroute and Hubbard a Florida construction company

Two of the eight who responded in June with statements of qualifications - Macquarie out of Sydney Australia and Abertis from Barcelona Spain - dropped out of the running before the evaluation. That left six to be evaluated.

This week it was announced that all six qualified and are invited to respond to the request for proposals.

Copes of the RFP including the concession contract will be released shortly.

Deadline for proposals, or bids really given they will all be pricing the one contract, will be December 10.

BACKGROUND: Alligator Alley is a 126km (78-mile) section of Interstate I-75 in south Florida connecting the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, and goes from near Fort Lauderdale to Naples. Originally constructed in the late 1960s as a two-lane, controlled access toll road it was known officially as Everglades Parkway, but it gradually adopted its colloquial name Alligator Alley for the number of alligators seen sleeping along it.

From 1986 to 1992 its roadways were duplicated to 2+2 lanes, allowing it to gain interstate designation (I-75).

Daily traffic is about 24k average and annual tolls about $23m.

Florida DOT is conducting the concession following a law passed last year requiring it to look at concessions of Florida DOT toll facilities.

Opposition at western end

Emotional opposition has developed to the proposed concession in the Naples area based on the likelihood that international ("foreign") companies will gain "control" of the road. the road. The extent of control to be retained by FDOT and allowed to the concessionaire company is spelled out in the concession contract.

CATCH-UP NOTE: Michael Lapolla former chief executive of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority is now US Director of Global Via.

http://www.alligator-alley.com/

TO BE ADDED TO: when we get access to the concession document.

TOLLROADSnews 2008-08-26 14:00