Following a swift and vocal backlash against their truck-only toll proposal, Rhode Island has backed off from their plan to toll trucks for crossing bridges across the state.
The truck-only toll was part of Governor Gina Raimondo’s RhodeWorks plan which would spend $1 billion over the next 10 years to try and repair the state’s failing bridges and roads. Unfortunately, it was going to be paid for out of the pockets of commercial truck drivers and carriers as the plan hoped to pull in $100 million a year from truck-only tolls. While the specifics of the plan were not know, it was thought that each bridge crossing would have cost $6, totaling $40-$50 to cross the island in one direction.
This “highway robbery tax,” as it had been called, drove the Rhode Island Trucking Association as well as the ATA and numerous other industry organizations to voice their dissatisfaction with the plan. As a result, the plan lost the support of such politicians as Rep. Nicholas Mattiello who just a week earlier had supported the plan, but afterwards was quoted as saying that he was “not ready to take action on the tolls at this point,” citing concern for the impact it would have on local businesses.
Just because the tolls didn’t make it into the state budget however, does not mean they’re gone for good. According to a report from NBCNews10, a special session could be called to have the General Assembly vote to institute the tolls.
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Source: ttnews, truckinginfo, overdrive, thetruckersreport, turnto10
I don’t want to say this to loud but if they hear me say it they may just do it. They could fine trucks for driving over bridges like they on 95 in Pawtucket . SHHHHH. By the way , that bridge that we truckers paid for could be a little nicer.
” it was thought that each bridge crossing would have cost $6, totaling $40-$50 to cross the island in one direction.”
You do realize that Rhode Island is NOT an island, right? SMFH.
Probably realized paying for the construction of the toll booths would be more than the total income of the project.
And by the time it was done, 90% of the carriers would just re-route up 395 into MA anyway.
This is a state that boasts a SINGLE truckstop in the whole state.