Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell (D) told Transport Topics he believed the federal government would approve his state’s application to toll Interstate 80.
“I'm optimistic that we'll get the permission to do it,” Rendell told TT Tuesday in a telephone interview.
Earlier this year, Pennsylvania made a second attempt to get federal permission to toll the east-west highway as part of its state transportation funding plan, Act 44.
In 2008, the Federal Highway Administration sent Pennsylvania’s application back without approving the tolling.
Rendell said tolling currently untolled interstate highways is one of several funding suggestions a coalition of officials called Building America’s Future would recommend.
Under current law, the U.S. Department of Transportation may allow three tolling pilot projects, but Rendell said that should be “uncapped and that any state that wants to toll a previously federal-aid highway can do so.”
Tolling interstates “is a great way of avoiding Washington having to raise taxes because tolls are user fees and there is a great deal more acceptance for user fees than there are for taxes,” Rendell said.
By Sean McNally
Senior Reporter
