I believe it is time to end all tool roads (rant)

[AustinBoston]

I have lived with toll roads all my life.  But yesterday, I experienced something that proved to me that in the 21st century, they are based on nothing but corruption.

We passed through one toll booth yesterday while heading north on Interstate 39 in Rockford, Ill.  It took one hour and 20 minutes to travel the last ten miles to the toll booth.

It gave me time to think about tolls.  I am now compelled to make a few statements.

First, 37 states have no problem maintaining their roads, bridges, and tunnels without any tolls at all.  States that can't pay for them without tolls need to seriously overhaul their transportation departments.

Federal highway funds pay close to 90% of the cost of construction and maintenance on interstate highways.  If a state can't pay for the rest without tolls, then someone needs to go to jail.

The very concept of a toll is stupid.  Highways, especially interstates, are for going.  Now, let's make everybody stop.  Tolls on interstates amount to a tax on interstate comerce.  IMNVHO, that makes them unconstitutional.

If a state is going to use tolls, then every road of that type - every last mile - should be a toll road.  Why should users of some roads - who have paid all of their federal and state highway and vehicle taxes in order to pay for the roads - have to pay again to use roads that they have already paid for?  Meanwhile, road users in other parts of the same state get to ride for free.  That amounts to a tax on geography.

One other thing.  When traffic backs up at the toll booth, it's time to drop the toll.  (Most tstates have a threshold and will do this.)  I spent at least three dollars on gasoline yesterday in order to pay my one dollar toll.  Had I been on the clock, my employer would have incurred costs of almost $100 in order for me to pay that one dollar toll.  I would rather have paid a $5 toll (in order to have enough toll booths and collectors) and gone right through than to have sat for nearly an hour and a half.

Illinois' I-Pass would have done no good.  The opportunity to move faster via the I-Pass only lasted for the last 250 feet.



The southbound traffic was just as bad, which meant it was backed up several miles into Wisconsin.  Were I the governor of Wisconsin, I'd have called the governor of Illinois and told him he had no right to close the border (that's essentially what had happened) and I'd be glad to send troopers or the Wisconsin National Guard down to help clear up the problem.

I believe the other 37 states should pass a bill that witholds ALL federal highway funds from states that have tolls on interstate highways.  It should be absolute - they get not one dime until every toll booth is gone.  I have already paid for those roads, I should not have to pay for them again.

Some will tell you the tolls are for maintenance (usually a lie because Federal Highway Funds are available for that).  But most toll roads I have been on (especially those in Illinois, New York, Pensylvania, and Massachusetts) were the worst roads of all.  Toll roads are there to line the pockets of corrupt politicians, and nothing else.

Austin

[SkipP]

Interesting post...and I couldn't agree more! Toll road are the least efficient way to keep traffic moving and waste fuel to boot. It's anti-progress at it worst.
 
That said, North Carolina has started a "Turnpike Commission" to start looking into the feasability of making some of the new roads toll. They've earmarked a few projects on the eastern end of the state and are even considering making I-95 a toll road! A new bridge into Wilmington, NC is going to be toll. This is in direct contrast to the new bridge into Charleston, SC where they actually want people to visit their fair city.
 
Soon, AB, you'll have to change the number to 36:mad:

[dthurk]

I would be more than happy to pick up whatever wayward tools I find on the road.  Lets all help clean up these tool roads.  (Sorry, couldn't resist.)

[chasd60]

I think Maine should only charge tolls to those that have other than a MAINE license plate on their vehicle.

[AustinBoston]

I think Maine should only charge tolls to those that have other than a MAINE license plate on their vehicle.

That would make sense if Maine didn't receive federal highway funds.  Because it does, I pay for Interstates in Maine as much as I pay for interstates in Minnesota.

[AustinBoston]

That would make sense if Maine didn't receive federal highway funds.  Because it does, I pay for Interstates in Maine as much as I pay for interstates in Minnesota.

On second thought, maybe the non-toll states should only toll drivers from Maine!

Austin

[AustinBoston]

I would be more than happy to pick up whatever wayward tools I find on the road.  Lets all help clean up these tool roads.  (Sorry, couldn't resist.)

You know, I proff red that poste three times.  Never even lokked at the tipografical error in th e title.

[dthurk]

I proof my posts several times, too, but things still seem to slip through.  What would we all do without typos?  Makes all this even more fun.  

On a serious note,  I rarely pay tolls, even though I live in the heart of "toll country".  I pay tolls if I'm driving to NYC (try to get onto Manhattan without a toll), or going to Buffalo/Canada.  That's usually about it.  I can avoid tolls in most other situations without seeming to cost me additional driving time.  My observation would be that Rt 17/I86 across the southern part of NYS is travelled more heavily by traffic trying to avoid the Thruway (I90) toll route.  Even at that, rush hour around here is about 5 minutes and traffic jams usually last to the next cycle of the light.  Even so, it doesn't seem logical that many states can operate their highway systems without tolls and others seem to thrive on them.  It doesn't make much sense, but then, when does government ever make sense?

[rccs]

If it wasn't for all the toll roads the people who work in the toll booths would be out of a job and would have to find other jobs. We need toll roads to pay these people! LOL

[AustinBoston]

If it wasn't for all the toll roads the people who work in the toll booths would be out of a job and would have to find other jobs. We need toll roads to pay these people! LOL

You may be laughing, but that was one of the objections to removing the tolls from the western half of the Mass. Turnpike (I-90) about 10 years ago.  They ended up removing the tolls for passenger cars, so the toll collectors (and traffic jams) are still there.

Austin

[RVMOMNDAD]

And today in the news there was a story that Oregon is considering making three areas of interstate toll-ways.   And I also found it interesting that they are considering a special tax on hybrid cars to recoup the loss of gasoline taxes.  I don't think that a person buying a hybrid car is doing it to get out of paying gas taxes.

[AustinBoston]

And today in the news there was a story that Oregon is considering making three areas of interstate toll-ways.

This is simple stupidity.  They will loose more in federal highway funds than they will collect in tolls.  To top it off, they will have to hire and train toll collectors and build toll booths.

And I also found it interesting that they are considering a special tax on hybrid cars to recoup the loss of gasoline taxes.  I don't think that a person buying a hybrid car is doing it to get out of paying gas taxes.

Some states have entire teams of legislators that do nothing but figure out how to sneak one past the taxpayer.  I worked on one project that put what amounted to a nine dollar a day tax on nursing home beds!  The official term for it was a "user fee".

When they got away with that, they tried putting a "user fee" on prescription medications. (That one backfired).  Before I left the state, they'd come up with a "user fee" for beds in mental hospitals.

We called the first the "old and sick tax," the second the "general sick tax," and the third the "sick in the head tax."  Even the people who were getting the money thought they were stupid and just plain mean things to do.

Austin

[4Galvs]

Austin,

I've lived in IL the better part of 40+ years, P/S don't get me started about toll roads!  

You should have been here when the former governor George Ryan suggested abolishing the toll roads prior to his election.  Shortly after being elected he RASIED the toll rates.

Now we have had to endure the latest scheme - open road tolling.  This means they are rebuilding all the toll booths - again.

The only bright spot is that with I-Pass on my commute both booths I pass through have express lanes.  Although one of them is in the process of re-construction...

[AustinBoston]

The only bright spot is that with I-Pass on my commute both booths I pass through have express lanes.  Although one of them is in the process of re-construction...

Have to do something with all those tolls.  

Austin