“at least half” of the funds would go to northern projects,

 

Just raise the gasoline tax

 

 

Except that the Ohio Turnpike hasn't received one cent of federal gas tax revenues despite that its motorists have paid it for 56 years. All that money has gone to the entire state (and to other states, since Ohio is a gas tax donor), not just for transportation projects north of US 30 -- something that will continue regardless of who owns/leases the road.

"At least half" to the third of the state that it actually passes through?  How generous.  All the roads in the rest of the state are free.  The turnpike's in-state tolls are paid disproportionately by those living nearby.  This deal is rotten on its face, right now, without question.  Until they put tolls on one of those new highways down south, and then sell it, the lion's share of Ohio Turnpike revenue should be spent on itself or in its vicinity.

Same this as the previous article - just a different accent

 

 

**************************************************

 

 

Gov. John Kasich promises that most money from turnpike lease deal would be spent in northern Ohio

Published: Tuesday, October 25, 2011, 5:50 PM   

By Reginald Fields, The Plain Dealer

 

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Gov. John Kasich, sounding more determined than ever to turn over the Ohio Turnpike to the highest bidder, began Tuesday trying to ease the public tension about his privatization plan.

 

The Republican governor said if he can pull off a deal to lease the 241-mile toll road, he would spend the better portion of the proceeds on infrastructure projects in northern Ohio and in communities along the turnpike.

 

It was Kasich's way of trying to chip away at one of the sharpest criticisms of his plan by residents near the turnpike -- that the governor would unfairly siphon toll money they pay to fund projects as far away as Cincinnati and other far reaches of the state.

 

Continued: http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2011/10/most_money_from_turnpike_lease.html

 

“at least half” of the funds would go to northern projects,

Just raise the gasoline tax

Except that the Ohio Turnpike hasn't received one cent of federal gas tax revenues despite that its motorists have paid it for 56 years. All that money has gone to the entire state (and to other states, since Ohio is a gas tax donor), not just for transportation projects north of US 30 -- something that will continue regardless of who owns/leases the road.

This is the same gimmick that Governor Rendell tried in Pennsylvania.  PennDOT would put toll booths every 25 miles along I-80 and the funds would be spent in the Philadelphia area, which is nowhere near I-80.  One study concluded that the obvious solution for maintaining Pennsylvania's highways was to raise the gasoline tax.  Apparently, that is an issue that is so sore with the voters that the politicians won't risk it.  So the public has to fund the highway system from general receipts and other services are neglected.

 

This is a horrible idea and Kasich is on the defensive.  Kasich is in the mode of Bush, whose administration  careened from one disaster to another but still managed to keep his popularity with his base and his image keen with the press:  Harken, Enron, 9/11, Abu Ghraib, Gitmo, Iraq, and Katrina. 

^I would pay a higher fuel tax for Ohio

Ohio picks KPMG to direct study on leveraging Ohio Turnpike

Published: Wednesday, November 23, 2011, 7:30 AM    Updated: Wednesday, November 23, 2011, 9:52 AM

By Tom Breckenridge, The Plain Dealer The Plain Dealer

 

BEREA, Ohio -- A nationally known audit and financial services firm will help state officials decide how best to pull lots of cash out of the Ohio Turnpike.

 

KPMG LLP, based in New York, will lead a team of financial, legal and communication consultants (pdf) that will recommend by next summer how to leverage the turnpike's toll revenue, state officials announced Tuesday.

 

Options include leasing the turnpike, which Gov. John Kasich favors; bringing it under the control of the Ohio Department of Transportation; leaving the toll road alone; or some other choice.

 

Read more at: http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2011/11/ohio_selects_kpmg_to_direct_st.html

Chambers Back Exploring Turnpike Lease

Nov. 23, 2011 3:10 p.m.

 

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- The eight metropolitan chambers of commerce in Ohio and the Ohio Chamber of Commerce have jointly written Gov. John Kasich to express their support for the state to explore leasing the Ohio Turnpike.

 

In the letter, chamber leaders said, "The time is now for a thorough examination of this important state asset." The coalition of the nine chambers represents the Buckeye State's larger metro areas as well as the Ohio Chamber. Among its members is the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber; chairman of the coalition is Tom Humphries, president of the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber.

 

The chambers agree that exploring the feasibility of leasing the turnpike is consistent with "the spirit of recommendations" in their report issued last year, "Redesigning Ohio -- Transforming Government into a 21st Century Institution." The report highlights ways the state could think differently about its practices.

 

READ MORE AT:

http://business-journal.com/chambers-back-exploring-turnpike-lease-p20471-1.htm

The State has hired KPMG to examine the feasibility and benefits/drawbacks from Turnpike privatization.

 

http://www.tollroadsnews.com/node/5631

Ohio Turnpike should see record revenues in 2012, as tolls take a hike

Published: Tuesday, December 27, 2011, 8:04 PM    Updated: Wednesday, December 28, 2011, 7:36 AM

By Tom Breckenridge, The Plain Dealer

 

BEREA, Ohio -- The Ohio Turnpike should see record revenues in 2012, thanks to the second round of toll increases in little more than two years.

 

The turnpike commission last week approved a $268 million operating budget for 2012 (pdf), which includes an anticipated $249 million in toll revenue.

 

That's a 7 percent bump over 2011, due mainly to a 10 percent increase in tolls that will kick in Sunday along the 241-mile highway.

Read more at: http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2011/12/ohio_turnpike_will_see_record.html

WCPN FM-90.3 "The Sound of Ideas" this morning

A Budget Shortfall at ODOT

http://www.ideastream.org/soi/entry/44743

The audio will be posted later today or later this week.

 

Gary Suhadolnik, former Executive Director, Ohio Turnpike Commission, paraphrased:

 

The only savings that could come from the turnpike are wages.  If the turnpike was leased, the new "owners" would be buying materials and services from the same contractors.  It is likely that they can squeeze $10 million or $15 million in wage costs from somewhere.

 

(Material costs are controlled by commodity prices.  $15 million / year for wages won't add up to much.  That's merely 1.5 billion if we leased it for 100 years. -k ).

 

Anyway, back to Gary Suhadolnick:

 

The expectation would be that the turnpike would be privatized and that the tolls would be increased greatly.  The profits ( =receipts minus costs ) would be spent in other parts of the state.

The proponents claim the revenues will go to "transportation projects", but you can probably lay down a safe bet that means more $$$$ for highways...and highways only.

 

Ohio could pay up to $3.4 million for consultants' study of the Ohio Turnpike

Published: Monday, April 30, 2012, 6:00 AM

By Tom Breckenridge, The Plain Dealer The Plain Dealer

 

BEREA, Ohio -- A taxpayer-financed study of ways to wring big bucks out of the Ohio Turnpike has reached $3.4 million, and could go higher.

 

After approving a $2.85 million study of the Ohio Turnpike in mid February, the state Controlling Board OK'd another $550,000 for two law firms that are part of a consulting team.

 

Led by Texas-based KPMG Corporate Finance LLC, the team will advise the state by year's end on a range of options, including leasing the 241-mile toll road or bringing it under ODOT's control.

 

Read more at: http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2012/04/post_9.html

With use of rail and bus services growing nearly 30 percent since 2000 and personal vehicle-miles traveled flat or falling, I have a suggestion of where this funding should be allocated.....

 

Representatives think turnpike revenue could be used for other projects

Published: Thursday, May 24, 2012

By KATE SNYDER

[email protected]

@KL_Snyder

 

ELYRIA — Representatives from the Ohio Department of Transportation told Lorain County commissioners the Ohio Turnpike can be leveraged to build infrastructure and add jobs in the state.

 

As of now, the turnpike’s value is “locked,” meaning revenue it generates can only go toward maintenance, construction and enhancement of the toll road. Jim Riley, deputy director of the Division of Innovative Delivery for ODOT, said the state needs $1.6 billion to complete projects that are ready to go right this moment, and an additional $10 billion for projects still in the planning process — and federal transportation funding is drying up.

 

“We’re at a time when we need to do things differently,” Riley said.

 

READ MORE AT:

http://morningjournal.com/articles/2012/05/24/news/mj6250440.txt

Possible lease of Ohio Turnpike raises questions for taxpayers, consumer group says

By Tom Breckenridge, The Plain Dealer

on November 23, 2012 at 9:00 PM, updated November 23, 2012 at 9:01 PM Print

 

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A statewide consumer group questions whether a possible lease of the Ohio Turnpike is a good deal for taxpayers.

 

The state must balance whether a big lease payment from a private toll road operator outweighs the benefits from a turnpike that remains under state control, says a report from the Ohio Public Interest Research Group.

 

Columbus-based PIRG raised that issue and others Thursday as a $3.4 million state study of the turnpike's future nears completion.

 

Gov. John Kasich has spoken enthusiastically of a turnpike lease as a way to raise $1 billion or more for sorely needed road-and-bridge projects, mostly in northern Ohio.

Read more at: http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2012/11/possible_lease_of_ohio_turnpik.html#incart_river_default

Ohio Turnpike will see record tolls this year, as Gov. Kasich mulls the toll road's future

By Tom Breckenridge, The Plain Dealer

on November 30, 2012 at 5:45 AM Print

 

BEREA, Ohio — The Ohio Turnpike will see record revenues of about $270 million this year, thanks to toll increases that took effect in early January.

 

The question now is how Gov. John Kasich's administration will opt to leverage that flow of cash.

 

The governor's office is expected to announce by year's end whether it wants to lease all or parts of the turnpike operation, such as toll collection, or merge the toll road with ODOT.

 

Read more at:  http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2012/11/ohio_turnpike_will_see_record.html#incart_m-rpt-2

Yep, driving is down and all the demographics point to a continued fall. Yet Brent Larkin wants to party like it's 1959 by building more roads and bridges. Send a response...

 

How will Kasich play the turnpike? Brent Larkin

Published: Saturday, December 01, 2012, 9:00 AM    Updated: Saturday, December 01, 2012, 9:07 AM

  By Brent Larkin, The Plain Dealer

 

One of the most dangerous paths to Gov. John Kasich's re-election may be a 241-mile highway that runs across Ohio's northern tier.

 

Jobs and the economy are almost always the dominant issue in an election for governor. That was the case in 2010 and almost certainly will be in 2014.

 

But high on that issues list is one fraught with potential peril for Kasich: His decision -- due to be announced soon -- on the future of the Ohio Turnpike.

 

READ MORE AT:

http://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2012/12/how_will_kasich_play_the_turnp.html#incart_river_default

Ohio Turnpike to stay public

 

By  Joe Vardon

The Columbus Dispatch Wednesday December 12, 2012 8:50 AM

 

Gov. John Kasich will not try to lease the Ohio Turnpike to a private entity and instead try to generate cash for state infrastructure projects while keeping the 241-mile toll road as a public asset, according to several lawmakers briefed on the administration’s plans.

 

The state could leverage the turnpike by issuing new debt against it or redirecting toll revenue toward projects away from the turnpike. Kasich would need a change in state law to spend turnpike revenue more than 1 mile away from the toll road.

 

Legislators who spoke on the condition they not be named said the administration seems to be steering away from a private lease of the turnpike. Kasich has been hinting at a possible lease for much of his two years in office — a move that would likely be the most vexing political hurdle for him to leverage the turnpike.

 

Read more at:http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2012/12/12/ohio-turnpike-to-stay-public.html

Could eliminate duplication of assets and thin down a management bloated with patronage appointments (Dispatch):

 

Lawmakers who spoke with The Dispatch said they expect the Department of Transportation to become heavily involved in the daily operation of the turnpike, which has been operated by the independent Ohio Turnpike Commission for all of its 57-year history.

 

***********now this**********

Plain Dealer: Kasich wants to issue $1.5 billion in Ohio Turnpike debt for projects elsewhere

 

Kasich's team believes that bonds, issued by the newly named Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission, can attract another $1.5 billion in federal and local funds, raising $3 billion total for transportation projects, 90 percent of them in northern Ohio.

That would free up the Ohio Department of Transportation to spend gas taxes on highways downstate, allowing all projects to move faster.

 

The turnpike will be a better neighbor, according to Kasich. For the first time, the turnpike will invest in sound walls and locally owned bridges that span the turnpike.

********** Ugh **********

Per the Kasich plan, a toll increase will happen soon.  Kasich will decrease the proportion of the gasoline tax that is paid to northern Ohio counties and state projects.  Kasich will also send 10% of the tolls' money to projects outside of northern Ohio.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2012/12/post_77.html#incart_river_default

 

They will also waste money on sound barriers.  Bob Dwyer at the Akron Beacon Journal has "proved" that they are ineffective.  That spending will be a "stimulus-jobs-program" and an award to the construction companies to keep money kicked back into GOP campaign coffers.

They will also waste money on sound barriers.  Bob Dwyer at the Akron Beacon Journal has "proved" that they are ineffective.  That spending will be a "stimulus-jobs-program" and an award to the construction companies to keep money kicked back into GOP campaign coffers.

 

Ding-ding-ding! We have a winner! Nailed it.

I don't see how people can be happy with this plan.  Sure, I'm glad he didn't lease the thing to some private company for a one time payment, but how can people not be upset that our tolls (taxes) are going up AND we will be receiving a smaller share of state gas tax dollars to fund road projects.  Why is northern Ohio shouldering most of the burden of road maintenance for the entire state?

 

How are people not screaming bloody murder about this?

Had to laugh at the "point made" that Northern Ohio will be receiving 90% of the funds so we should be jumping up and down with joy.  Oh, by the way, we will also be talking away the gas tax funds you receive and directing them south. 

Then SCREAM! 

Why can't one of your representatives ban funds for the turnpike for every ever except the route that it is on? Politicians across this state don't seem to mind banning funds from other projects that are not in there district. eg Cincinnati streetcar.

Another question to be asking of Mr. Kasich and his allies in the General Assembly:

 

Why are you devoting all of the funding to building more highways when demographic studies and census data show people are driving less, buying fewer motor vehicles and relying more on public transportation, bikeways or moving to live in more walkable neighborhoods? 

 

No doubt there are legitimate and critical highway projects that involve needed redesigns and rebuilds, but with transit authorities seeing greater demand for service at a time when their funding doesn't come close to adding more and better service..... why no effort to set aside funding for non-highway options for moving people?  Unconstitutional?  Perhaps, if the revenues were from gasoline taxes.  But how does the Ohio Constitution square with using revenues from Turnpike tolls for a highways-only policy?

 

Not being snarky here.  Just asking the questions that ought to be asked of those pushing for this use of the Ohio Turnpike revenues.

BTW, if they argue that turnpike tolls cannot be used for anything other than roads under Ohio's Constitution, I can argue that the $14 million in revenues received in 2011 from concessions at turnpike services plazas may not represent a fee derived from the registration, operation, or use of vehicles on public highways. Depending on the sources of other revenues, they could push the flexible revenues to $17 million per year....

 

http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/constitution.cfm?Part=12&Section=05a

 

http://www.ohioturnpike.org/media/pdf/2011CAFRFINAL_small.pdf

 

Kasich was in Cincinnati yesterday extolling the brilliance of his plan to take money from Northern Ohio and use it to expand the damage I-75 does to urban neighborhoods in Cincinnati (bringing it from 3 lanes to 4).

 

Please fight this, my Northern brethren.

Kasich was in Cincinnati yesterday extolling the brilliance of his plan to take money from Northern Ohio and use it to expand the damage I-75 does to urban neighborhoods in Cincinnati (bringing it from 3 lanes to 4).

 

Please fight this, my Northern brethren.

 

Thanks for the heads-up.

 

Why is an extra lane needed? Where is the traffic coming from? What alternatives analyses were done? Is a transit component included? If not, file a Title VI civil rights complaint with the Justice Department against ODOT....

http://urbanmilwaukee.com/2012/09/13/how-state-ignored-civil-rights/

 

Back to the Turnpike.

Surely someone else could explain what's going on more accurately than I can, but basically there are 3 major road projects totaling something like $4bil proposed for "improvements" on interstate 75. The biggest one is the Brent Spence Bridge "replacement" (which isn't a replacement but a redundancy). That is to be paid for by tolls on the bridge, and is largely a Kentucky thing (though not entirely). Along with that is a set of "improvements" between the Western Hills Viaduct and the Norwood Lateral, and another set between the Norwood Lateral and either the Cross-County Highway or 275. Part of the plan is to widen the highway from 3 to 4 lanes (it is currently 4 lanes up to I think Hopple Street, but they want to expand that much further north), and redoing a bunch of interchanges (including the elimination of left exit ramps). Some of this might be warranted, but the majority of it is not! And it is definitely not something you guys should be footing the bill for!

 

Kasich touts Turnpike money plan

 

The massive rebuilding of Interstate 75 from the Western Hills Viaduct to the Ronald Reagan/Cross County Highway is exactly the kind of project that could benefit from a new plan to unlock up to $3 billion in Ohio Turnpike revenue, Gov. John Kasich said Friday.

 

Details are yet to be worked out, and projects have been promised nothing. But the governor said his plan for using toll revenue could provide significant economic development benefits in southwest Ohio.

 

“It’s almost breath-taking when you think about this,” Kasich told business and political leaders at Cincinnati State, part of a two-day tour of Ohio to promote his plan and create 65,000 jobs across the state.

 

Read more

 

Here is some info about alternatives kinda/sorta: http://www.i75millcreekexpressway.com/alternatives.htm

 

I believe the city has pushed to have some right-of-way reserved for light rail. I'm not sure the extent to which the city has been successful in getting pro-urban plans into the official plans. I think this is the only transit component that has been discussed. Making room for light rail to exit the subway tunnel and cross 75 (and the Mill Creek) to the Northside neighborhood would be a nice feature. Adding the actual light rail system to the plans and scrapping the more anti-urban "improvements" would be ideal.

Turnpike proposal sidesteps debt cap

Toll road treated as independent asset

BY JIM PROVANCE

BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU CHIEF

 

COLUMBUS — Gov. John Kasich’s proposal to “leverage” the value of the 241-mile Ohio Turnpike to jump-start highway and bridge construction spending across the state boils down to a massive borrowing plan.

 

By having the bonds issued by what is essentially an independent entity, the state is able to borrow about $1.5 billion it otherwise could not.

 

The move allows the state to sidestep its own constitutional debt cap as well as a narrower limit on separate highway borrowing backed exclusively by gas tax revenue.

 

Read more at:  http://www.toledoblade.com/State/2013/01/06/Turnpike-proposal-sidesteps-debt-cap-toll-road-treated-as-independent-asset.html

This proposal is par for the Kasich course. A la Romney, Kasich will overload the Turnpike with debt until one of those surprise recessions comes along (you know, the ones that hit every seven years but seem to take everyone by surprise) and tolls will "have to" double. This is classic leverage buyout, and this time it is Northern Ohioans being bought and sold for the benefit of Cincinnati. Quite a massive transfer of wealth southward. I'm curious whether my GOP state representatives are going for this.

^Rep. Ron Gerberry (D., Austintown), a critic of the plan, accused the Kasich administration of essentially taxing northern Ohioans while not being willing to raise the state gas tax that would be paid by all Ohioans as some prior governors, Republicans and Democrats, have done.

...

“It is in my opinion [that] the state is finding a way to sidestep the 5 percent constitutional requirement of the state by throwing the debt on the turnpike and using it for projects off the turnpike,” Mr. Gerberry said. “But is it legal? It probably is.”

This proposal is par for the Kasich course. A la Romney, Kasich will overload the Turnpike with debt until one of those surprise recessions comes along (you know, the ones that hit every seven years but seem to take everyone by surprise) and tolls will "have to" double. This is classic leverage buyout, and this time it is Northern Ohioans being bought and sold for the benefit of Cincinnati. Quite a massive transfer of wealth southward. I'm curious whether my GOP state representatives are going for this.

I doubt that. They are going to put tolls on any widening in the area and the Brent Spence Bridge.

As someone who lives in Poland right on the Ohio/Pennsylvania border and use both Turnpikes on a weekly basis, I hate this plan.  I just traveled to DC for work twice within the past week and Pennsylvania's Turnpike is a dream compared to the Turnpike in the Youngstown area.  If Columbus needs money for road projects, toll 70.  If Dayton needs money for road projects, toll 70 and 75.  And if Cincinnati needs money for road projects, toll 75.  No way should anywhere in central or southern Ohio get money from the Turnpike.  Split the damn state up, cause we all know Columbus doesn't give two sh*** about the state north of Delaware.  The 10% you want to give to the rest of the state can go to updating the Turnpike in the Youngstown area.  It is a complete embarrassment leaving PA and entering Ohio on that thing.  It is old, the road surface is horrible, and modernization ha!  Ohio's Turnpike is stuck in the 90s with EZpass while PA has got its stuff together.

The state cannot put a "toll" on those highways unless they pay back the construction and maintenance money they got from the federal government.  The fed made a few exceptions to that rule.  Pennsylvania tried to "toll" I-80 and were stopped by the federal government.  I think a new bridge like the Brent Spence Bridge mentioned above could and should get a toll.  They need to start raising the gasoline tax.

Three states got approval to toll Interstates, the most prominent being Missouri with I-70 between St. Louis and Kansas City.

I googled the Missouri story and now the gutless leaders are backing away from tolling I-70.

I googled the Missouri story and now the gutless leaders are backing away from tolling I-70.

 

Not surprising, since most view "freeways" as a God-given right.

Note that an ODOT spokesman says the way potential Turnpike funds are distributed for projects would not change.  Is that even legal?....even under the current Ohio law regarding motor vehicle fuels tax?

 

Gov. Kasich's turnpike plan delivers cash, jobs and debt

By Tom Breckenridge, The Plain Dealer

on January 22, 2013 at 7:00 AM, updated January 22, 2013 at 7:07 AM Print

 

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Gov. John Kasich left hundreds of millions of dollars on the table while he kept much of northern Ohio happy last month by opting to leave the Ohio Turnpike intact.

 

Combining operations with ODOT or leasing it to a private operator would have earned far more than the $1.5 billion the governor plans to generate by borrowing against future tolls at the turnpike, a study shows.

 

But pumping up debt, under any circumstance, has raised concern about harm to the toll road's rock-solid credit.

 

Read more at:  http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2013/01/gov_kasichs_turnpike_plan_supp.html#incart_river_default

Kasich is making a play to the Ohio Teamsters?  I think labor is going to keep solidarity with the other public workers and crush Kasich in 2014.  The manufacturing unions kicked Romney in his magic britches last year. 

 

Kasich wanted to avoid layoffs of toll collectors or any other turnpike workers, most of whom are represented by a Teamsters local. Hodges said, however, that the turnpike will continue to let attrition thin a work force that has already been pared by several hundred in recent years.

The Teamsters have occasionally supported GOP candidates for political office, so having their support could divide and conquer organized labor.

Jimmy Hoffa was a Republican, but that was decades ago.

Jimmy Hoffa was a Republican, but that was decades ago.

 

Except Bill Presser and later his son Jackie urged that the Teamsters back Nixon and then Reagan.

This thread needs to be revived.  Kasich is not selling the turnpike but rather is selling bonds to be repaid by future revenue.  The July 22, 2013 press release indicates fully *half* of the bond proceeds being spent in Cincinnati, Columbus, and Portsmouth.  The outrageous Portsmouth bypass will cost $440 million and still have a private operator pocketing tolls.  This 16-mile expressway will cost 4X the similar 8-mile Nelsonville Bypass, so double per mile. 

 

http://www.dot.state.oh.us/news/JandTPlanDocs/072213-PRESSRELEASE-NWOhio-Districts1and2.pdf 

Jimmy Hoffa was a Republican, but that was decades ago.

 

Except Bill Presser and later his son Jackie urged that the Teamsters back Nixon and then Reagan.

 

I was involved in the 1980 presidential campaign and DRIVE was not only on our side but actively so.

 

Labor across the board was on its best behavior that year.  :)

 

The Teamsters have always been somewhat in play.  I doubt Kasich can get their backing, though I still suspect he has 2014 in the bag since he's done a pretty good job governing and he's of the party opposite the President.    But he can at least minimize their impact, since the rank and file is extremely unthrilled with Democratic support for "immigration reform" and Mexican trucks on US roads.

This thread needs to be revived.  Kasich is not selling the turnpike but rather is selling bonds to be repaid by future revenue.  The July 22, 2013 press release indicates fully *half* of the bond proceeds being spent in Cincinnati, Columbus, and Portsmouth.  The outrageous Portsmouth bypass will cost $440 million and still have a private operator pocketing tolls.  This 16-mile expressway will cost 4X the similar 8-mile Nelsonville Bypass, so double per mile. 

 

http://www.dot.state.oh.us/news/JandTPlanDocs/072213-PRESSRELEASE-NWOhio-Districts1and2.pdf

 

Outrageous.  And how many vehicles do these bypasses see a day?  5000?  Yeah, that's way more worth it than a train connecting the three largest cities.

$440 million is a bit more than the express lanes on I-271 east of Cleveland. Portsmouth has 20,000 people.

The fools will accomplish the destruction of habitat and farmland .  Outrageous indeed

Apparently if you are on the Turnpike Commission, you can get special "Turnpike" license plates:

http://bmv.ohio.gov/g_turnpike.stm

Apparently if you are on the Turnpike Commission, you can get special "Turnpike" license plates:

http://bmv.ohio.gov/g_turnpike.stm

 

No fee for these.  How do I sign up? 

 

I bet Kasich has these on his Buick Skylark!

Friday, September 20, 2013

Moody’s Warns of Rising Debt Load for Toll Roads

by Tanya Snyder

 

Despite increased toll rates, toll roads saw their debt per roadway mile increase by a third last year, from $14.3 million in fiscal 2011 to $18.9 million in 2012.

 

The average toll per transaction rose from $1.82 to $1.96 over the course of the last year. Moody’s warned in a press release last week that they expect toll roads to continue seeking higher rates, but that politics could get in the way:

 

Steady toll rate increases will be necessary to support a growing debt burden, says Moody’s, although the unfettered ability to increase toll rates could face mounting political pressure in an economy that is growing slowly. One reason Moody’s continues to have a negative outlook for the US toll road sector is the weak and uneven pace of the economic recovery. Moody’s expects a rise in the number of toll roads and toll-supported projects.

 

READ MORE AT:

http://dc.streetsblog.org/2013/09/20/moodys-warns-of-rising-debt-load-for-toll-roads/

Its another toll road in another state, but its credit card got maxed out and can no longer pay its bills. Is this the Ohio Turnpike's future??

 

http://mobile.bloomberg.com/news/2013-09-11/california-toll-road-risks-biggest-default-since-detroit.html

Well it certainly doesn't bode well for the planned Brent Spence Bridge tolls.