News From the Daily Item

Rep. Fairchild: 'We can't let our guard down'

By Wayne Laepple, The Daily Item
Friday, December 14, 2007, Reprinted with Permission

While some may consider the Interstate 80 tolling fight over, others see recent action by the Federal Highway Administration as only the first round in a protracted battle.

Earlier this week, the federal agency returned an application to place tolls on I-80 to the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission with a request for much more detailed information.

Rep. Russell Fairchild, R-85 of Lewisburg, said the Federal Highway Administration did the right thing.

“We all pointed out all the holes in the proposal,” he said Friday. “The FHWA came to the same conclusion.”

However, he cautioned, the questions raised by the FHWA in its rejection memo give the Turnpike Commission a road map to follow.

“We can’t let our guard down,” he said.

Gov. Ed Rendell initially wanted to privatize the Pennsylvania Turnpike to raise money for road projects, but in July, the Legislature approved an alternate plan to introduce tolls on I-80 and raise tolls on the turnpike.

The resulting revenue is supposed to reach roughly half of the $1.7 billion a year that a transportation study commission said is necessary to adequately address the state’s needs.

The Federal Highway Administration questioned the need for more highway funds, however, noting that PennDOT has transferred $255 million in interstate maintenance funds to other programs, rescinded almost $39 million in other highway maintenance funds, and currently has $310 million in unobligated interstate maintenance funds.

Dave Hall, executive director of the Central Susquehanna Valley Chamber of Commerce, said he believes it is important to separate central Pennsylvania from the infrastructure issue.

“The plan unfairly penalizes this area,” he said. “There has to be a plan to pay the infrastructure bill, but this isn’t it.”

Mr. Hall also said the I-80 tolling plan is not dead.

“This will be a long process,” he said. “This doesn’t close any doors. It just makes everyone go back to the drawing board.”

Maria Culp, executive director of the Central Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce in Milton, was thrilled at the news.

“It’s like an early Christmas present,” she said.

“Our hard work is being recognized,” she said. “The FHWA questioned some of the points we brought up during the I-80 corridor meetings.”

She said the I-80 tolling proposal was detrimental to the entire state, not just this region.

“I think they were surprised at the money left on the table,” she said. “But there were other holes in the application.”

Businesses in the area were pleased as well.

Dennis Curtin, spokesman for Weis Markets, said the firm was encouraged “the FHWA is doing its job.”

Weis officials earlier estimated the toll plan could double their operating costs, which they said would be passed on to customers. The supermarket chain supplies its stores from a distribution center in Milton, and well over half its trucks use I-80 to reach stores in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

“It’s clear the application gave the FHWA pause,” said Mr. Curtin. “This is an encouraging sign.”

For Steve Patton, president of Watsontown Trucking in Milton, the rejection was a small victory.

“I’m pleased,” he said. “I knew there would be reasonable people on the federal level who would see this application for what it is.”

Mr. Patton had stated at several meetings that his firm would incur more than $750,000 in additional expenses if the tolling proposal was enacted. “I think this rejection should be an embarrassment to the Turnpike Commission and to Gov. Rendell,” he said. “They returned three pages of questions.”

He specifically mentioned the FHWA’s question of how the Turnpike Commission could issue $610 million in bonds when the lease agreement with PennDOT caps bond issues at $600 million.

“There’s a bigger victory coming,” he concluded. “I don’t believe the hurdles can be overcome.”