Proposed Turnpike Reform Package Designed to ‘Stop Bleeding’ of Uncollected Tolls
Pennsylvania State Senator Marty Flynn plans to introduce a Turnpike reform package with the hope of preventing future uncollected tolls, often referred to as “leakage,” writes Marley Parish for the Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
Last year, more than $104 million in Pennsylvania Turnpike tolls ended up not being collected.
“This number is unacceptable, and it demands a targeted approach to increase enforcement and penalties for those that consistently evade paying applicable tolls,” wrote Flynn, a member of the 14-member Senate Transportation Committee, in a memo last month.
In three pieces of the proposed legislation, Sen. Flynn suggests:
- Higher penalties for those drivers who fail to pay their tolls
- Raising the statute of limitation to pursue offenders
- Mandated Turnpike Commission reporting to the General Assembly
- Reinstation of staff at turnpike interchanges
“The attempt to streamline and modernize the collection of tolls through the shift to all-electronic tolling was made with good intentions,” wrote Flynn in the memo. “However, the Turnpike Commission has failed to sufficiently adapt existing enforcement mechanisms — along with a lack of new tools — to address the issue of unpaid tolls.
“We need to stop the bleeding and find solutions.”
Read more about the Turnpike reform package in the Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
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