For many of us, we've been waiting patiently for years to see congress make toll roads happen. Now that just might happen. I think they should greet motorists at the state border, coming and going.
There is one regret; tolls could let Republicans off the hook when it comes to raising taxes to replenish the transportation fund, allowing them to keep their "no tax" pledge to a right wing lobbyist. Still, there's a good chance tolls won't cover all the costs, so who knows:
Congress may clear the way for states like Wisconsin to look at adding toll roads. Rep. Reid Ribble, R-8th Congressional District, told News 3 on "For the Record" that the federal highway bill moving through the House of Representatives may allow new states to toll.
"I think ultimately states will have the authority to toll on their own roads," Ribble said. "The federal government is not going to have the ability to mandate tolls, but they'll likely be given the authority to toll the interstate system if they choose." The bill would allow states that want to toll to apply to the federal government to do so a year from now.
A Marquette Law School Poll found in May 2014 that 55 percent of Wisconsinites polled were willing to use tolls to pay for highway projects,
The 2015-17 state budget requires that the Wisconsin Department of Transportation study the issue and find out how much money could be raised and where the toll roads would go. Lawmakers say an obvious choice would be to add tolls to I39/90 between the state line and Madison. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee was considering the bill Thursday and the full House is expected to approve the bill by next week. The current transportation measure will run out on Oct. 29.
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