4.2  Real Toll Concessions

As shown in Table 4-1, fourteen, or exactly half of the P3 concessions to have reached financial close in the U.S. since 1992, are real toll projects. Eleven of these facilities have opened to traffic and the remaining three are in construction. The concession periods for these project range from 35 to 85 years, and average nearly 52 years.  Of the eleven open real toll P3 facilities, two have since been purchased by public sector transportation authorities, and a third filed for bankruptcy in 2016. The concession period of one project was extended by 20 years in order for it to avoid bankruptcy, another was extended to help recoup losses earlier in the concession period, and two others were refinanced, one in the face of lower than anticipated toll proceeds. The remaining five operational real toll P3 projects opened to revenue traffic during 2014-2016, and initial financial results from these projects appear to be exceeding expectations in most cases.

As described in Chapter 2 of this report, real toll concession projects can be further broken down into three distinct groups:

  Greenfield toll road facilities

  Crossing projects

  Priced managed lanes

It is helpful to assess these project types separately in order to come to a better understanding of the outcomes of real toll P3 concessions.