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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The Texas Department of Transportation is |
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celebrating its 100th anniversary on April 4, 2017, and this |
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significant milestone provides a welcome opportunity to recognize |
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the agency's many contributions to the Lone Star State; and |
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WHEREAS, Originally known as the Texas Highway Department, |
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this essential organization was established in 1917 by the 35th |
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Texas Legislature; with a staff of just 10 employees, the |
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department carried out one of its earliest construction projects in |
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1918, which involved building a 20-mile road between Falfurrias and |
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Encino; moreover, in its first nine months, the department |
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registered nearly 200,000 automobiles and created the first |
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official highway map, showing the routes of more than 8,800 miles of |
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improved roadways that would tie the state together; and |
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WHEREAS, During World War II, highway construction was |
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limited to those routes essential to national defense, but after |
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the war ended, the Texas Highway Department began an aggressive |
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rebuilding and expansion effort; in 1945, the agency began to build |
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expressways in major Texas cities, and in 1949, it created a program |
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to develop a secondary system of rural, farm-to-market highways; |
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meanwhile, between 1945 and 1950, vehicle registrations jumped from |
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1.7 million to 3.1 million; and |
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WHEREAS, In 1975, the organization was renamed the State |
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Department of Highways and Public Transportation, and its |
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responsibilities were broadened to include local and regional |
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public transit systems; during the 1990s and 2000s, the agency |
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adopted its current name and further expanded its scope to |
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encompass aviation, railroads, ports, and waterways; and |
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WHEREAS, Today, TxDOT employs some 11,000 men and women who |
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work every day to help 27 million motorists travel safely and |
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efficiently over more than 80,000 miles of roadway, and the skill |
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and dedication of the department's staff play a vital role in the |
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continued prosperity of the Lone Star State; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 85th Texas |
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Legislature hereby commemorate the 100th anniversary of the |
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founding of the Texas Department of Transportation and extend to |
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all those associated with the agency sincere best wishes for |
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continued success in their important work; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for TxDOT as an expression of high regard by the Texas |
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House of Representatives. |