With the cost of maintaining highways growing exponentially, Peter Samuel of TollRoadsNews comments on the real possibilities for using tolls to fund highway projects.
Samuel was attending a recent panel given by the IBTTA, where Ed Regan of Wilbur Smith Associates gave a presentation on the topic. Regan explained that rebuilding the highway system is 10-20 times more expensive than the original cost because greenfield construction is so much easier than repairing and expanding freeways with traffic on them. Tools, says Regan, could help take up the slack:
"Tolling could take on the job of rebuilding the interstates. Current toll revenues are around $10b, and they would need to be increased at least three-fold to take on the Interstate Rebuild job, which Regan calls "probably the most important transport investment in American history.""
Regan admits that there is "little demand for new capacity, but a huge demand for rebuild funds..."
FULL STORY: Declining US$s for highways - where tolling fits in
How Interstate Tolling Could Work
A new Reason Study advocates for the "third" revenue option (with gas tax and VMT fee being the first two) for fixing the soon-to-be insolvent Highway Trust Fund - interstate highway tolling, and allowing the states to pursue that option.
Interstate Tolling, the Third Rail of Transportation User Fees, Finds Fans
Discussion on increasing user fee revenue has centered on increasing and/or indexing the gas tax and applying VMT fees. Now some are pushing a return of the original user fee - road tolls applied by states or regions on interstate highways.
Tolling Gaining Traction for Highway Projects in Kansas
After the state broke ground on a tolled express lane project at the eastern edge of Kansas, near Kansas City, tolls are also under consideration in the nascent stages of a corridor study located at the southwest edge of the same region.
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
Median Home Prices Top $1 Million in Over 200 California Towns
Towns once known for their affordability are seeing sharply rising home prices.
LA County Receives Reconnecting Communities Grants
Seven grant awards totaling $162 million will be used for planning, capital projects, and regional partnerships to reduce environmental harm and improve access in disadvantaged communities.
Seine Pollution Could Hinder Olympic Swim Events
Events like the triathlon could be impacted if tests continue to reveal high levels of dangerous bacteria in Paris’ famous river.
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