Toll company operating SH 130, fastest stretch of road in Texas, files for bankruptcy

The company that built SH 130, the privately financed toll road from Seguin to Austin filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Wednesday. The road has the highest speed limit in the U.S. The company that built SH 130, the privately financed toll road from Seguin to Austin filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Wednesday. The road has the highest speed limit in the U.S. Photo: Express-News File Photo /Express-News File Photo Photo: Express-News File Photo /Express-News File Photo Image 1 of / 23 Caption Close Toll company operating SH 130, fastest stretch of road in Texas, files for bankruptcy 1 / 23 Back to Gallery

SH 130 Concession Company, the private operator of the toll road Texas 130, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Wednesday.

The company, owned by San Antonio-based Zachry Corp. and Spanish road developer Cintra, built and operates the tollway between I-10 near Seguin and Mustang Ridge, south of Austin. It has struggled to pay back its debt because traffic failed to meet projections since it opened in 2012.

The company said it filed for protection in order “to address its outstanding debt obligations.”

Alfonso Orol, the company’s CEO, said in a statement the company will continue to operate its segment of the tollway while it continues discussions with its lenders.

“The filing will have no financial impact on the state of Texas," he said. "It’s business as usual for our customers, employees, vendors, and surrounding communities during these proceedings.”

The toll road has the highest speed limit in the U.S. — 85 mph — and connects to a northern stretch of the toll road to Georgetown that was built by the Texas Department of Transportation. But that hasn’t been enough to attract substantial traffic on the company’s 41-mile highway, and Moody’s Investment Services assigned the company a junk-bond rating two years ago because of it.

Moody’s emphasized its negative outlook for the toll road in a report that predicted that revenue would fall 70 percent below expectations last year.

Read more later about the troubled road at ExpressNews.com or in Thursday’s edition of the San Antonio Express-News.

kblunt@express-news.net