Could there be more than one toll road in West Virginia’s future? As the commission that operates the West Virginia Turnpike takes the necessary steps to increase tolls on that road for the first time in 28 years, officials of the state Department of Transportation are floating the idea of making U.S. 35 in Mason and Putnam counties a toll road for the part between Winfield and the Ohio River.
According to The Associated Press, DOT spokesman Brent Walker said money raised by tolls could be used to finance the last 14 miles of construction. County commissions in Mason and Putnam counties have already endorsed the idea.
The state DOT is also thinking about placing tolls on the new Mon-Fayette Expressway between Morgantown and Pittsburgh. There are no tolls for West Virginia’s section, but Pennsylvania does collect tolls for its section.
Tolls on the new section of U.S. 35 make sense. And it’s something that people should prepare for on other roadways.
Building roads and bridges has become more and more expensive in recent years. Taking care of the most urgent needs will require decades based on current funding from fuel tax revenues. Sooner or later, the people who use certain roads and bridges will have to pay directly for using them.
Some bridge projects in urban areas, such as Cincinnati and Louisville, are expected to cost $1 billion or more. That is too much money to take from fuel tax revenues, as it would severely hinder the ability of states to take care of other highway needs.
Tolls may be the only way to get the new bridge between Ironton, Ohio, and Russell, Ky., moving. The existing bridge is 87 years old, but Ohio has had trouble getting the project moving within its current revenue stream. The bridge had tolls until the late 1970s or early 1980s.
For decades, U.S. 35 has been a major truck route for freight originating in or moving through Columbus and heading south. The West Virginia section of the road is the last remaining two-lane part between Columbus and Interstate 64 near Winfield. At times, driving U.S. 35 in Putnam and Mason counties is truly a white-knuckle experience.
If the new road had tolls, local traffic would likely use the existing road. Trucks would prefer the new one, and their operators likely would carry most of the load on tolls.
Of course, there would need to be a provision that tolls would be used to pay off construction costs on that road only, or perhaps for maintenance and repair. When the road was paid off, tolls would be reduced or eliminated. Toll roads and bridges cannot become cash cows to pay for non-highway projects.
Tolls may or may not be a good idea for U.S. 35 and other new projects. But it definitely is an idea worth exploring.