The newest tolling study released by the Connecticut Department of Transportation on November 15 came at a price -- and it wasn't just commuters’ anxiety over paying the state for every highway mile they drive.
According to an email from DOT Principal Attorney Alice Sexton, the tolling report produced by engineering consultant CDM Smith cost taxpayers $2,035,000, roughly equal to $23,391 per page.
That’s approximately half the state’s cost to repair Hartford’s I-84 viaduct located near the Capitol Building, according to the DOT.
Sexton’s email was in response to Sen. Len Suzio, R-Meriden, who had previously filed a Freedom of Information complaint against DOT for refusing to release the study, even after DOT Commissioner James Redeker cited the study’s results before the State Bond Commission in July.
It wasn’t until mid-November on the afternoon of a snowstorm that DOT quietly released the study, which calls for 82 tolling gantries on every Connecticut highway and toll rates ranging from 3.5 to 7.9 cents per mile for passenger cars.
CDM Smith estimates the toll revenue could top $1 billion per year, although construction would cost at least $372 million and the tolls would require $100 million per year in operating costs.
It also proposed tolls on non-interstate highways like Route 8 and Route 15, among others.
This was the second tolling study produced by CDM Smith since 2015. The previous iteration offered a variety of tolling scenarios and pricing, which ranged from 10 to 20 cents per mile with up to 121 tolling gantries.
However, during the 2018 legislative session, pro-toll lawmakers like House Speaker Joe Aresimowicz, D-Berlin, began to walk back those tolling rates, saying they would offer discounts for in-state drivers.
The newest tolling study was “designed to inform a dialogue among our elected leaders and the citizens of Connecticut about the potential for instituting tolls in the state,” Redeker said in a press release.
While DOT’s tolling study cost over $2 million, it is not the only tolling study in the works.
Gov. Dannel Malloy issued an executive order to borrow $10 million to do an environmental impact study on tolling Connecticut’s highways, which is necessary to obtain federal approval to toll interstates.
Governor-elect Ned Lamont reiterated his plan to toll only out-of-state trucks. A similar attempt by Rhode Island to toll only out-of-state trucks currently faces a lawsuit.
OUR VIEW: Truck tolls can't fix all of the state's money woes
Gov.-elect Ned Lamont is hoping to take a page from a neighboring state’s playbook by imposing tolls on trucks in Connecticut.
Rhode Island built toll gantries on Interstate 95 on its border with Connecticut and began charging truckers $3.50 per trip. The tolls went into effect in June.
According to the Providence Journal, “in the month beginning July 11, Rhode Island tolled more than 200,000 truck trips for a total revenue of more than $664,000, quite a haul and more than the state projection.
Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo, a Democrat, launched the program during her first term in office with the intention of using the money for road and bridge improvements.
As expected, the American Trucking Association opposed the tolling of only big rigs and has filed a federal lawsuit. The lawsuit is pending.
Also as expected, Rhode Island residents worried that the state would break its promise to not toll cars.
So far, car tolls haven’t been imposed and numerous road and bridge construction projects are underway in the Ocean State.
No wonder Lamont wants to bring truck tolls to Connecticut. But will truck tolls here be successful?
Like any new government initiative to raise revenue, a truck toll proposal should be met with questions and skepticism Specifically, how much will tolls costs? Where will they be located? How will the state finance building the gantries? Who will oversee the tolls? How will the revenue be spent? And, the biggest question of all: will motorists be tolled too?
According to the Associated Press, Lamont said he would focus on tolling big rigs hoping to rake in $250 million annually. But a DOT study shows tolling all vehicles would net $950 million by 2023, the AP reported.
Whether Connecticut decides to just toll trucks or plans to move ahead to toll everyone, in the end, the result will be the same. The fees to truckers could be passed on to consumers. If drivers also get hit with tolls, the impact is doubled.
Connecticut must maintain its aging infrastructure, but tolls can’t fix all of the state’s financial problems. Only a fiscally responsible governor and General Assembly can guide the state out of its dire financial situation.
According to the Providence Journal, “in the month beginning July 11, Rhode Island tolled more than 200,000 truck trips for a total revenue of more than $664,000, quite a haul and more than the state projection.
Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo, a Democrat, launched the program during her first term in office with the intention of using the money for road and bridge improvements.
As expected, the American Trucking Association opposed the tolling of only big rigs and has filed a federal lawsuit. The lawsuit is pending.
Also as expected, Rhode Island residents worried that the state would break its promise to not toll cars.
So far, car tolls haven’t been imposed and numerous road and bridge construction projects are underway in the Ocean State.
No wonder Lamont wants to bring truck tolls to Connecticut. But will truck tolls here be successful?
Like any new government initiative to raise revenue, a truck toll proposal should be met with questions and skepticism Specifically, how much will tolls costs? Where will they be located? How will the state finance building the gantries? Who will oversee the tolls? How will the revenue be spent? And, the biggest question of all: will motorists be tolled too?
According to the Associated Press, Lamont said he would focus on tolling big rigs hoping to rake in $250 million annually. But a DOT study shows tolling all vehicles would net $950 million by 2023, the AP reported.
Whether Connecticut decides to just toll trucks or plans to move ahead to toll everyone, in the end, the result will be the same. The fees to truckers could be passed on to consumers. If drivers also get hit with tolls, the impact is doubled.
Connecticut must maintain its aging infrastructure, but tolls can’t fix all of the state’s financial problems. Only a fiscally responsible governor and General Assembly can guide the state out of its dire financial situation.