Bonanza from lease of turnpike not so big?

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story on the expected bids to lease the Turnpike. What's interesting is that even with the downturn of the market, a Public-Private Partnership on the Turnpike can still beat the best effort of government. Reporter Joe Grata writes:

"If a Pennsylvania Turnpike lease fetches $12 billion and the money were invested at an 8 percent rate of return, the state would net $960 million a year -- more than the $945 million per year over the next 10 years from Act 44, and without tolling I-80, a contentious issue."

Of course, only when we see the final bids and the parameters of the lease will we be able to fully compare the Turnpike Commission's Act 44 and the potential for a Turnpike lease.