I 80 in Pa toll road update

[Bruno]

Public meetings set for I-80 tolls in Pennsylvania OOIDA is urging its members and the public to attend a series of public meetings regarding the tolling of Interstate 80 in Pennsylvania.

OOIDA officials and a growing number of lawmakers oppose the tolling proposal.

The purpose of the public meetings, according to the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, is to provide information and receive community input about the conversion of I-80 to a toll road.

State transportation legislation signed in July by Gov. Ed Rendell set the ball in motion for I-80 tolls, but tolling an interstate requires approval from the Federal Highway Administration. FHWA has not yet signed off on the proposal, but it has assigned the proposal to a federal program for consideration.

The commission, which signed a 50-year agreement in mid-October to lease I-80 from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, has scheduled eight public meetings in November with more meetings being scheduled after that.

The meetings are scheduled for 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at each of eight locations in an open-house format. The public will be able to view display materials and discuss the proposal one-on-one with project staff. Formal presentations by transportation officials are scheduled at 5 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. at each meeting.

Dates and locations are as follows:

Nov. 7, Clarion High School, 219 Liberty St., Clarion, PA 16214
Nov. 7, Clearfield Area High School, 2831 Washington Ave., Clearfield, PA 16830
Nov. 8, Bellefonte Area Middle School, 100 N. School St., Bellefonte, PA 16823
Nov. 8, Dubois Country Club, 10 Lakeside Ave., Dubois, PA 15801
Nov. 12, Milton Area High School, 700 Mahoning St., Milton, PA 17847
Nov. 12, Mountain Laurel Resort, Rt. 940, White Haven, PA 18661
Nov. 19, Notre Dame High School, 60 Spagenburg Ave., East Stroudsburg, PA 18301
Nov. 19, Grove City College, 100 Campus Drive, Grove City, PA 16217



Drive safe
Dave Mayfield
FedEx Custom Critical
14 years as an O/O in Expediting.

 

[ATeam]

I wrote this in my blog on August 3, 2007.

I learned today that U.S. Congressman, Robert Brady (a/k/a Bob Brady) favors charging tolls on I-80 through Pennsylvania. I was disappointed to also learn that Congressman Brady has no idea how fuel tax is charged to truckers and distributed to the states. Congressman Brady believes that the state of Pennsylvania "gets nothing" from trucks that pass through the state. Learned from listening to a rebroadcast of the August 2 edition of Radio Times on NPR as I drove overnight on I-80 through Pennsylvania. We picked up a load of medicine in Iowa for delivery in southeast Pennsylvania.

In this radio interview, Congressman Brady characterized trucks and truckers as a burden to the state of Pennsylvania. He openly complained about having to help truck drivers who break down or get hurt while passing through the state. As I hauled a load of medicine to be used by Pennsylvania citizens, and considered the sales tax, fuel tax and single-state registration fees I, a Minnesota resident, have paid to Pennsylvania, I grew angry. It was frustrating listening to Congressman Brady broadcast his ignorance of the facts.

My heart sank as I listened to this public official speak. Congressman Brady has been in the U.S. House since 1998. He has an important voice and vote on the I-80 toll question. People's lives and the business climate of Pennsylvania and beyond will be significantly affected if I-80 tolls are established. Yet, in making his decisions, Brady is operating with a total ignorance of how fuel tax works, and how trucks are an asset to his state and the nation. Whether a trucker buys fuel in Pennsylvania or not, Pennsylvania fuel tax is still charged to truckers who drive through the state. This is done through the long-established IFTA program; something a public official in Congressman Brady's position should certainly know.

 

[layoutshooter]

Phil,

If the good congressman had a brain he would be in private industry not government.

They all need a soap box. That is how they get re-elected. PA, like every other state, needs more money. They ALWAYS need more money. If they were to raise taxes on PA residents they would not be re-elected. That is all they are interested in, re-election. SOOO, they beat up on the big bad truckers, big oil, etc. The state residents buy it because, after all, it is a congressman, he should know what he is talking about. It will pass, they get more money. He gets re-elected and we take it in the ear.

Layoutshooter

 

[riverrat2000]

>In this radio interview, Congressman Brady characterized
>trucks and truckers as a burden to the state of
>Pennsylvania. He openly complained about having to help
>truck drivers who break down or get hurt while passing
>through the state. As I hauled a load of medicine to be used
>by Pennsylvania citizens, and considered the sales tax, fuel
>tax and single-state registration fees I, a Minnesota
>resident, have paid to Pennsylvania, I grew angry. It was
>frustrating listening to Congressman Brady broadcast his
>ignorance of the facts.
Seems to me that is what a majority of people think about trucks in this country anymore and that is why we are getting dumped on by every tom,#####, and harry that touches trucking, I am sure that one of these days the good people that deliver everything America will wake up and say enough is enough I just hope that it happens before its too late. I also believe that I will live to see the end of independent owner/operators,big business has wanted that for many years and are slowly succeeding in accomplishing their goal. I would suggest that if the good congressman thinks we are such a burden that we show him what it would be like without trucks and refuse to take any load that would have to touch the good state of Pa. it would quickly change minds I know it won't happen,yet but it is what is needed to be done to make people wake up to the fact that they are destroying trucking.

 

[cheri1122]

Those meetings for 'public input' are nothing more than PR - a way for the officials, who have clearly decided to go ahead with the revenue enhancing deal to say that they were fair about it, and considered the impact on everyone.
But remember: truckers forced the state of Ohio to revise their plans, when the tolls on the Ohio Turnpike were raised, by avoiding the toll road. Communities along route 20, the favorite alternative, were so unhappy with the sudden increase in truck traffic, that the Turnpike Commission was forced to entice the trucks back to the turnpike, by reducing the tolls (on trucks) and raising the speed limit for trucks.
We need to make our voices heard, to OOIDA and the relevant officials, and if & when our voices are ignored, we need to speak out as we did in Ohio, by choosing an alternate route. They'll hear us then!

 

[jay shipley]

I am an independent, and also a resident of PA. Rendell ignores everything the people want.....just like the FMCSA, the President of the USA.....all of them. I have written to to Rendell and asked WHY we didn't hear about the selling of our infrastructure BEFORE he was re-elected????? Obvious, but wanted him to admit it. He never did respond. The new political attitude is that they will do WHAT they want, WHEN they want....and at our expense....no matter what we think! Did we want the Mexicans in here? NO! But, guess what? They're here! Did we want the increase of fuel taxes (in the oil baron administration?) NO! But we got it! Did we want the HOS revised again? NO! But they're putting it in our backsides once more! The only thing that I can think of is this.....if they toll I-80.....the country roads are pretty. And I can make my way East or West without kissing their high dollar behinds! If they restrict the country highways, after they've been accessable before, then possibly OOIDA would be interested in filing suit for discrimination for an entire industry........because that's all any of this is! Brady????? He's nothing but an idiot! He needs to be without crap paper for awhile and wonder why he can't wipe his butt. Not even a magazine around......guess the trucks didn't bring it! He shouldn't even have a vote anyway.......I thought you had to be able to think and reason before you could do that!

 

[riverrat2000]

I think that a new prerequisite for being a poliition is having an I.Q. no higher than double digits, and must be completely to ignore the voting masses after all since big business has all the money why do they have to bother with the common citizen, after all we are now not in position to grease their slimy palms