The Bush administration "has been very proactive in telling the states that privatization and tolling are part of the future."
Toll roads hot issue across U.S.
8/14/06
By MAUREEN GROPPE
Gannett
Copyright 2006
WASHINGTON -- Indiana isn't the only state where toll roads are a hot issue.
Nearly half the states are in the process of planning new toll roads, according to a survey of state transportation officials conducted by the Government Accountability Office.
Congestion and the need for new funding sources are driving the trend.
The public's distaste for toll roads is the reason more aren't in the works.
"Officials from nearly every state that is not pursuing tolling mentioned some form of public or political opposition to toll roads," according to the GAO.
But the nonpartisan investigative agency also concluded that "decision makers cannot simply build their way out of congestion, and traditional revenue sources may not be sustainable."
"The gas tax system doesn't provide enough revenues to meet the needs of the interstate system today," said Jim Riley, national transportation director for The HNTB Companies, which advises states on transportation planning.
Indiana's controversial decision to generate $3.85 billion in transportation funding by leasing its toll road to a private consortium generated national attention and much local opposition.
The state also plans to ask the federal government for permission to look at tolling to help build the long-awaited Interstate 69 extension between Indianapolis and Evansville, which may also be privatized.
"We want to explore all viable means that can get this highway built as quickly as possible," said Gary Abell, deputy commissioner of the Indiana Department of Transportation.
By using a combination of public and private funds for the $2 billion project, Abell said construction could start in 2008 and be done in about a decade.
Although tolling has been going on in the United States since the late 1700s, it always has been controversial.
When the federal government was planning the national interstate system, President Dwight Eisenhower wanted to pay for the highways with bonds paid off by toll revenues. Instead, the bill passed by Congress in 1956 not only relied on gas taxes, it also banned tolls on interstate highways and all federally assisted highways.
Congress began lifting some of the toll restrictions in the 1990s.
The most recent major transportation act, passed in 2005, allowed for various types of pilot projects to construct interstates with tolls or to manage congestion on existing interstates.
That's far less than the changes states asked for, but the trucking industry opposed a total elimination of tolling restrictions on federal roads, according to the Transportation Research Board.
About 18 states -- including Indiana -- have told the Federal Highway Administration they're potentially interested in applying for one of the federal pilot programs for toll financing of interstates.
Twenty-four states already have toll roads. Sixteen of those are planning new ones and seven additional states are looking to impose them for the first time.
Riley said the changed federal rules are a major reason for the increased interest. So is the fact that the Bush administration "has been very proactive in telling the states that privatization and tolling are part of the future."
Other countries, including Italy, Spain and France, relied heavily on tolls to build their national expressways.
In the United States, federal and state gas taxes have been the primary source of highway funding.
Lawmakers, however, have been reluctant to increase gas taxes, which the GAO says have not kept up with increased construction costs or with the level of new construction and upkeep many believe is needed. In addition, the growth of fuel-efficient and alternative-fuel vehicles is expected to further reduce fuel tax revenues.
Still, imposing tolls is often just as controversial as raising the gas tax, which hasn't budged from its national rate of 18.4 cents per gallon since 1993.
The most common complaints about tolls include:
And increasing traffic may keep the pressure on for more roads and more types of funding. Freight traffic on roads, according to the GAO, is expected to double in 20 years.
mgroppe@gns.gannett.com
© 2006 Federated Publications, Inc. A Gannett Site :www.gannett.com
8/14/06
By MAUREEN GROPPE
Gannett
Copyright 2006
WASHINGTON -- Indiana isn't the only state where toll roads are a hot issue.
Nearly half the states are in the process of planning new toll roads, according to a survey of state transportation officials conducted by the Government Accountability Office.
Congestion and the need for new funding sources are driving the trend.
The public's distaste for toll roads is the reason more aren't in the works.
"Officials from nearly every state that is not pursuing tolling mentioned some form of public or political opposition to toll roads," according to the GAO.
But the nonpartisan investigative agency also concluded that "decision makers cannot simply build their way out of congestion, and traditional revenue sources may not be sustainable."
"The gas tax system doesn't provide enough revenues to meet the needs of the interstate system today," said Jim Riley, national transportation director for The HNTB Companies, which advises states on transportation planning.
Indiana's controversial decision to generate $3.85 billion in transportation funding by leasing its toll road to a private consortium generated national attention and much local opposition.
The state also plans to ask the federal government for permission to look at tolling to help build the long-awaited Interstate 69 extension between Indianapolis and Evansville, which may also be privatized.
"We want to explore all viable means that can get this highway built as quickly as possible," said Gary Abell, deputy commissioner of the Indiana Department of Transportation.
By using a combination of public and private funds for the $2 billion project, Abell said construction could start in 2008 and be done in about a decade.
Although tolling has been going on in the United States since the late 1700s, it always has been controversial.
When the federal government was planning the national interstate system, President Dwight Eisenhower wanted to pay for the highways with bonds paid off by toll revenues. Instead, the bill passed by Congress in 1956 not only relied on gas taxes, it also banned tolls on interstate highways and all federally assisted highways.
Congress began lifting some of the toll restrictions in the 1990s.
The most recent major transportation act, passed in 2005, allowed for various types of pilot projects to construct interstates with tolls or to manage congestion on existing interstates.
That's far less than the changes states asked for, but the trucking industry opposed a total elimination of tolling restrictions on federal roads, according to the Transportation Research Board.
About 18 states -- including Indiana -- have told the Federal Highway Administration they're potentially interested in applying for one of the federal pilot programs for toll financing of interstates.
Twenty-four states already have toll roads. Sixteen of those are planning new ones and seven additional states are looking to impose them for the first time.
Riley said the changed federal rules are a major reason for the increased interest. So is the fact that the Bush administration "has been very proactive in telling the states that privatization and tolling are part of the future."
Other countries, including Italy, Spain and France, relied heavily on tolls to build their national expressways.
In the United States, federal and state gas taxes have been the primary source of highway funding.
Lawmakers, however, have been reluctant to increase gas taxes, which the GAO says have not kept up with increased construction costs or with the level of new construction and upkeep many believe is needed. In addition, the growth of fuel-efficient and alternative-fuel vehicles is expected to further reduce fuel tax revenues.
Still, imposing tolls is often just as controversial as raising the gas tax, which hasn't budged from its national rate of 18.4 cents per gallon since 1993.
The most common complaints about tolls include:
- Users are paying "twice" for roads built with gas tax dollars.
- Tolls hit low-income motorists the hardest.
- Tolls divert traffic onto non-toll roads.
- Stopping to pay tolls is inconvenient and slows traffic.
And increasing traffic may keep the pressure on for more roads and more types of funding. Freight traffic on roads, according to the GAO, is expected to double in 20 years.
mgroppe@gns.gannett.com
© 2006 Federated Publications, Inc. A Gannett Site :
posted by Porkus Maximus Tex: at Monday, August 14, 2006
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