HARTFORD - State Rep. Linda Gentile (D-Derby, Ansonia) attended a press conference today to support electronic tolls and advocate for a better transportation infrastructure system in Connecticut.
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| Linda M. Gentile |
Gentile is specifically supporting legislation to require the state Department of Transportation to prepare a state-wide plan to implement electronic tolling on Connecticut’s highways.
Electronic tolls are simply transponders on the road that communicate with a transponder in your vehicle - Connecticut transponders would be eligible for a discount.
“Connecticut roads, bridges, and highways are deteriorating from old age and overuse,” Rep. Gentile said. “The bottom line is that the Special Transportation Fund will be insolvent in two to five years and we are in desperate need of additional funding.
"In order to ensure the safety of our residents, we need to invest in our transportation infrastructure now. Since the federal government requires that the revenue from electronic tolls be used towards transportation, Connecticut residents can be reassured that the investment in electronic tolls will pay off.”
Over the course of 25 years, electronic tolls could raise $37-62 billion depending on the toll-rate used - according to the CDM Smith study commissioned by the state Department of Transportation and published in 2016.
“According to the 2017 American Society of Civil Engineers Report, the average Connecticut driver spends $864 per year in motor vehicle repairs,” Gentile said. “The longer we wait to improve these conditions, the more money it’ll cost drivers to fix and the more dangerous our transportation system becomes. The need to pass this legislation is more urgent now than ever.”
The legislation will be filed and raised by the Transportation Committee as soon as the 2018 legislative session commences.
This is a press release from Gentile's office.
