DPS cites statewide demands in decision to end NTTA tollway patrol agreement (original) (raw)

The current three-year agreement for dedicated DPS patrols will expire at the end of August.

By Chase Rogers, Staff Writer | The Dallas Morning News • Published 3 hours ago • Updated 3 hours ago

NBC 5 News

The Texas Department of Public Safety has notified the North Texas Tollway Authority that it will not renew an agreement dedicating state troopers to patrol NTTA roadways after the deal expires at the end of August.

NTTA oversees more than 150 miles of roads, bridges, and tunnels across North Texas, including the Dallas North Tollway, President George Bush Turnpike and Sam Rayburn Tollway.

DPS Col. Freeman Martin told NTTA CEO James Hofmann in a June 1 letter that a “comprehensive assessment of our statewide operational requirements” led the agency to forgo renewal. Martin wrote that DPS must preserve the flexibility to deploy personnel and resources in response to an “ever-changing threat environment.”

“The structure of the current agreement limits that flexibility in ways not aligned with DPS's statewide operational needs,” Martin said in the letter reviewed by The Dallas Morning News.