Strike leads turnpike to study switch to flat tolls
PITTSBURGH (AP) – A seven-day walkout by toll collectors and maintenance workers in November cost the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission some toll revenue, but the simplicity of the flat tolls imposed during the strike persuaded officials to study whether such a system might make sense for the long term. The idea of using flat tolls was added to an ongoing study into various ways of collecting tolls in the future, said Joe Brimmeier, the commission’s executive director.
“When I look at the bottom line, I can simplify this whole toll collection system and make more money,” Brimmeier told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review for a story published Monday. “Why not just have a flat toll and eliminate tens of millions of dollars in high-tech equipment?”
Travelers on most of the turnpike currently are charged according to the distance they travel and the weight of their vehicles.
During the strike, which began just before Thanksgiving at one of the busiest times of the year, management officials manned the toll booths on most of the turnpike system and collected a flat $2 toll for cars and a $15 toll for commercial vehicles. Motorists using the automated E-ZPass system were charged the regular toll if it was lower than the flat fee.
“We never had a traffic problem ever during the seven-day strike,” commission spokesman Bill Capone said Monday. “Most people had that $2 in their hand when they were pulling up” to the toll booth.
The commission, which increased tolls in August, collected a little more during the strike than the old tolls would have produced and an estimated $2.2 million less than the new tolls, Capone said.
Devising a flat-toll system that is fair to motorists would be difficult, Capone said.
The rates used during the strike were based on average tolls. Motorists who used the turnpike for short trips paid more than they otherwise would have paid, while those on long trips wound up with bargain rates, he said.
Capone said it is unlikely the committee that is studying tolls would make any final recommendation on future changes this year.
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Information from: Tribune-Review, http://www.triblive.com