Pennsylvania shouldn’t turn I-80 into state’s cash cow

Vindy.com has an editorial against I-80 tolling, noting

The state pledges to spend nearly $200 million more on maintenance than it is spending now, But revenue from the road is projected at $1 billion a year for the first 10 years and as much as $2.5 billion a year later.

Where will the rest of the money go? And why should Washington give Harrisburg such a money-making asset? Somehow we don’t think that a toll road producing four to 10 times what is needed to maintain it is what President Eisenhower envisioned when he championed an interstate highway system more than 50 years ago.

We have pointed this out before, and have analyzed the Turnpike Commission's own numbers on this.


The Turnpike Commission doesn't deny these facts, but they don't acknowledge them either. They do continue to deny that "money will go to mass transit," but that is just a matter of shifting - mass transit will get more funding if I-80 is tolled than if it is not. See this video from WYOU, as a case in point.

Luckily, I came on afterward to counter their spin (as did Ed Edwards from the Alliance to Stop I-80 Tolling).