This is a good place to drop general and weird news, entertainment, and general show prep material that might be interesting to air talent or producers. Hot dog threads ALWAYS welcome.
Tolls envisioned on other W.Va. highways May 07, 2009 @ 05:00 PM
The Associated Press
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) —
The West Virginia Turnpike isn’t the only toll road in the state’s future. Department of Transportation spokesman Brent Walker said officials are talking about tolls for U.S. 35 between Winfield and the Ohio River.
Walker says 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.
Next year, motorists using the new Mon-Fayette Expressway between Morgantown and Pittsburgh will pay tolls for the Pennsylvania section of highway. There are no tolls for West Virginia’s section.
Talk of tolls comes as the agency that oversees the turnpike plans hearings to increase the tolls on the 88-mile highway, something that hasn’t happened in 28 years.
The Turnpike has spawned it's own shadow government.
The bonds were nearly paid off several years ago and the
state government issued new bonds that paid for Tamarack
and a lot of other things like real estate holdings in
Charleston and elsewhere. So the tolls remain and are increased
because the value of the real estate holdings has decreased.
Tamarack is a huge money loss and a flop. If any other roads
in the state become toll roads, the tolls will never come off.
They will have their own state police like the turnpike.
They will have their own maintenance staff like the turnpike.
Bad idea for citizens, good idea for career bureaucrats.
"Everyone Should be aware that you're just a screen grab away from infamy."
Look for toll roads all over America in the next decade. With the deteriorating condition of the country's bridges and roads, it's the only way to pay for construction and maintenance.
This topic was in the news 3 years ago and we discussed it on my show. ( about Rt 35 in particular)
Seeing as how mostly Federal funding is paying for the highway, I'm not sure how a Toll road would play out here in this instance. But God knows that if the government can pull it off... they will. Then, you will have another Tamarack to build to compliment it. See the following: http://www.mywvhome.com/tamarack.htm
"I know I've got a lot against me: I'm White, I'm Protestant, I'm hard working. Don't you have an Amendment to protect me"? Archie Bunker
fearpeddler wrote:we could use... o wait, the countrys done pissed away all its money trying to save bad banks and failing companies...
Yeah, and if you multiply that number by four, you'll have the dollar amount we spent in Iraq to bomb and then rebuild their country.
As I recall, we've spent about $120B in Iraq and Afghanistan since '02, Obama spent $850B+ on mostly unspecified "stimulus" in the first 20 days of his administration. The money spent on Iraq was for the defense of American freedom, whether or not you think it successful; Obama's spendulus mainly funded Democratic dream projects. The Iraq funding was voted on by members of both parties, the porkulus money was spent by Democrats who shut the Republican members out of the very discussions over the bill.
The money spent on bank bailouts is considerably more than that spent on wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
We've spent nearly a trillion (possibly much more) in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2002. It's been hard to track, because, until the new administration came in, it was all kept off the books.
The new budget will be the first that includes war costs on the books. Including the 60 (80?) billion in the current war funding request.
Rt. 35's construction money is coming largely from Fed funds, but upkeep once it's open is up to the state.
This ten-year total cost of the war to protect Americans (whether you agree with it or not,) is still less in cost than the money spent by team Barry-Harry-Nancy in ONE DAY, and considered in bill form for less than 24 hours. This money does not include bailout money.
If you believe the Bush admin "hid" the budgeted money, and the Obama admin shines light on it, well, that's your lookout.
Pa. Turnpike increased its tolls by 25 percent this year.
From the Pa. Turnpike website ...
Toll-increase proceeds are mainly earmarked for non-Turnpike projects. The funds generated by this increase will largely be used by PennDOT to help finance off-Turnpike road and bridge projects and the state's 74 mass-transit operations.
Paying toll doesn't necessarily bother me. We usually plan our trips to avoid toll roads.
However, the last time I traveled the Pa. Turnpike (I-76), it was pretty crappy.
Come on! A thread about a toll on a local freeway turns into Obama vs. Bush. Come on!
Route 35 is a very important freeway for Charleston. As it stands now, most drug dealers have to trudge down 23 and out 52 through Huntington to get to I64.
Big Media wrote:
Route 35 is a very important freeway for Charleston. As it stands now, most drug dealers have to trudge down 23 and out 52 through Huntington to get to I64.
if thats the case then it'll drive up the price of drugs too... and nobody likes that
Doesn't MSNBC stand for the Media that Spins the News for Barrack's Cabinet?
Political Correctness is always having to say you're sorry. - Me
PA 43 is now $0.95...up from $0.75. Since I have to drive it round trip twice a week, I usually stay on 857 and get on 43 "free" at the third exit in PA. But if it is late or bad weather, I don't mind forking over the near dollar to get home quicker. Construction at the intersection/new interchange of PA 51 at Uniontown is a dog right now, though. If you don't know what you're doing on US 119/PA 43, you're cooked trying to get on 51.
One of my all time favorite quotes, from the great Chuck Barris: "If the road to hell is paved with good intentions, what's the Pennsylvania Turnpike paved with?"...
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None of this would be necessary if gasoline taxes actually went to ROADS instead of:
1. Robert C Byrd monuments
2. Bike trails
3. Other stuff not related to roads and bridges.
"Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached"
-Manuel II Palaiologos Byzantine Emperor (1391-1425)
I thought of a new idea, .... a revese toll road. The state could pick about any State Route, in the Northern part of the state. They could then pay us to drive on them. It could start out at about a dollar, for every 10 miles traveled. Then as they put some more money, to upgrade them to real roads; they could lower the toll to end up at zero.
