"Does anybody have a dime?"
Posted on 12/04/2017 12:19:08 AM PST by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
Angela Dean spends at least $200 a month to cover after-school care for her 5-year-old son. Getting back and forth to work — and making sure she picks him up in time — costs another $200 just in tolls.
“If I didn't take toll roads, my commute would be an hour-and-a-half or more depending on traffic,” Dean said. “I get off work at 5:30 p.m. and I have to pick my son up by 6:30 or pay crazy late fees. When I take the toll roads, I get there with about 15 minutes to spare.”
The North Texas suburbanite uses the President George H. W. Bush Turnpike or Sam Rayburn Tollway to travel between her Lewisville home and Richardson workplace each day. Those roads are like many across Texas built in an era when transportation leaders said there wasn’t enough tax money to fund all the construction needed to keep up with population growth.
Regional planners and state officials are also adding managed toll lanes alongside existing highway main lanes throughout the state’s urban areas. Those are used to partially finance road rebuilds and expansions — and to provide drivers with the option of paying to avoid congestion.
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But as the number of toll projects continues to ramp up in the name of easier commutes, Dean is among thousands of Texans feeling anything but relief. Drivers across the state complain about paying tolls on top of gas taxes, being charged exorbitant late fees and having to choose between traffic delays or costly toll bills.
Texans, local officials and legislators have pushed back on plans for new toll roads and managed toll lanes in recent years. Voters in 2014 and 2015 sent the Texas Department of Transportation more revenue, after state leaders assured them that the money wouldn’t be used on toll projects. The agency considered using an accounting maneuver to still fund some new managed toll lanes but backed off that idea amid political pressure Thursday.
Meanwhile, Texans are seeing existing toll lanes impacting their pocketbooks — and influencing major life choices.
In 2015, an 11-mile stretch of Austin’s MoPac Boulevard expanded to eight lanes from six, and the two new lanes were tolled — to the displeasure of Laura Thomas.
The Austin resident bought a house near the corridor thinking the construction would be complete within a year. But construction on the $200 million project took much longer, making the drive to her daughter’s school “unbearable.” Thomas found herself having to choose between paying a toll to skip traffic or spend time trapped in gridlock.
“At peak times the cost of the toll could be over $10,” Thomas said. “My stress level was through the roof.”
Eventually, Thomas sold her house and downsized to an apartment in another part of the city that had 500 fewer square feet and one less bedroom.
“Obviously it was a big trade-off,” Thomas said. “But my main question to myself when making the decision was, ‘Is my sanity worth it?’ And it was worth sacrificing some things for peace in the mornings.”
For Christie Nichols Duty of Kaufman, a town about 35 miles southeast of Dallas, toll roads have proven to be hard to avoid — even when she tries. Last year, she and her husband were driving on Interstate 35-E near downtown Dallas when they realized they were in a lane that would force them to enter the Dallas North Tollway. The couple tried to change lanes, but weren’t successful.
Duty said they’ve also had problems with confusing signs on other highways, like LBJ Freeway, that have managed toll lanes running alongside main lanes.
“For people that are not used to the area, it can be very deceiving,” she said.
When the couple received a $35 bill from the North Texas Tollway Authority, they didn’t initially pay it because they weren't happy with being "forced onto the tollway." Now it’s ballooned into a $1,200 bill.
“We’ll have to do a payment plan because we don't have that kind of money sitting around,” Duty said.
Michelle Kelly of Mesquite used to rely on toll roads all the time when she was a student at the University of North Texas in Denton. These days, she uses the Bush Turnpike to go to nearby Rowlett or visit Firewheel Town Center in Garland. But she said the “pricey tolls” mean she only uses that corridor on occasion.
“I’m on a budget, and it hurts my budget if I drive on them on a regular basis,” she said.
Dean, the Lewisville commuter, is among many people who thought that once toll revenues paid off construction costs, roads and toll lanes would become free for drivers. But toll agencies and the Texas Department of Transportation instead plan to use excess toll money to fund road maintenance — and construction of new projects.
That includes new toll projects.
“The sad thing is, the tolls never go away,” Dean said. “Oftentimes we are paying tolls just to sit in traffic, and the toll roads are supposed to alleviate the traffic.”
Read related Tribune coverage:
A state lawmaker has asked the attorney general to weigh in on whether the state's transportation agency can use voter-approved funds to rebuild or expand highways that will also include toll lanes alongside them. [Full story]
The president-elect's proposals to expand and fix up U.S. highways seem to be a recipe for more toll roads. Texans from both parties hope to change that. [Full story]
Paying off most of the debt Texas has racked up building toll roads would cost about $36.7 billion, a final report from the Texas Department of Transportation revealed, a tall order for state lawmakers who would like to wean the state off tolled highways. [Full story]
“Not happening. You do know that our Legislature is part time and they don’t get to sit around and cook up schemes like they do in CA, right? They also have to go back to their districts and hold down real jobs when they’re not in session. We don’t pay them when they’re not in session either.”
So you’re getting f*cked on the cheap! That’s the only difference! Austin is Sacramento with the added feature of funny hats and cow $hit! Actually it’s worse than that because also being a “university town,” it has features of Berkeley too. Can’t wait to see you guys crying “who was that masked man?” when your state finally turns blue. And that will indeed be a sad day, but it is coming because y’all have too much hubris to acknowledge that fact.
I always use the service roads but I’m not in a hurry and plan my travel time accordingly. My husband, on the other hand, will gladly pay tolls to avoid stop lights. Men! ;)
The difference between then and now, is that at the time we didn't have a 'tollway authority'. Once that bureaucracy was established, no toll road has become free, nor will they. Personally, I hate tolls, and do everything I can to avoid them.
Bush's Fault.
"Does anybody have a dime?"
This article makes me appreciate DART. I drive about 20 minutes to my train, and cruise into downtown, I can work on my computer on the way. No stress.
Wait until they start sending you toll bills for other peoples vehicles. Then you get to send them documentation to prove it’s not your bill to pay yet they continue to send bills. Or you can call and talk to people who almost as smart as the kids guinea pigs.
“The difference between then and now, is that at the time we didn’t have a ‘tollway authority’. Once that bureaucracy was established, no toll road has become free, nor will they. Personally, I hate tolls, and do everything I can to avoid them.”
Well, I have no affinity for toll roads either. But, I don’t see another solution. I would be interested in yours.
When a toll road is paid off, it should become a non-toll road. That's pretty straightforward, and I wouldn't object to them nearly as much. This would be especially easy today as they don't even build toll booths anymore.
My primary objection to toll roads is how freaking expensive they are, especially when you compare it to gas taxes on a per-mile basis. I think we're paying .35¢ per gallon here in Texas. I get about 40mpg on my motorcycle, and 30mpg in my car, so you're looking at a range of less than a penny per mile to a little bit more than a penny per mile. Compare that to $3 to travel just a few miles on a toll road. I used to have to commute a pretty long distance to my job, and saved myself almost $300/month in tolls alone when I moved across the metroplex to be closer to my job. I wouldn't object nearly as much if you could pay a quarter, to get to where you're going, but that is not what is happening.
Glad I recently left the rat race.
Perhaps the woman in question could work a friendlier schedule, one that allows her to avoid the worst traffic. No mention of a husband (and father) that could pick up the kid, either.
1. “I didn’t take toll roads, my commute would be an hour-and-a-half or more depending on traffic...”
2. “Then take the toll roads and shut up about it. If there were NO toll roads, ALL the routes would be almost an hour and half longer, dummy.”
3. “Who you calling dummy, MF!”
The lady from the article that I quoted in the post, MF! Is that you?
It’s interesting that the rest of the country is now getting to experience what it is like to live in New Jersey.
First it was to pay off the construction bonds. Then it was for maintenance. Now the money goes into the general budget to pay for all the corruption throughout the State government.
The toll toads in NJ appear to have excessive maintenance activity vs. the Federal interstates. NJ owned superhighways are always under construction and it takes ten times longer for any work managed by the state of NJ versus the Federal government.
Yes it is, Texas is turning into a police state.
Here is what you wrote:
““I didn’t take toll roads, my commute would be an hour-and-a-half or more depending on traffic...”
Then take the toll roads and shut up about it. If there were NO toll roads, ALL the routes would be almost an hour and half longer, dummy.”
There was no 1,2,3! Just how would you have interpreted your comments if you were me? Seems clear to me that you were using a pejorative term which was directed at me!
And FWIW, I didn’t write the first sentence in the first place, so maybe you got to the “wrong dummy!”
“The toll toads in NJ appear to have excessive maintenance activity vs. the Federal interstates. NJ owned superhighways are always under construction and it takes ten times longer for any work managed by the state of NJ versus the Federal government.”
One word: UNIONS!
“Yes it is, Texas is turning into a police state.”
How so?
As others have stated in comments at another story about toll roads today: It is highway robbery!
Bunch of BS... the reporter isn't willing to reconcile the 'pity party' with a basic truth - a $35 bill doesn't turn into a $1,200 bill overnight... and no they weren't 'forced' onto the tollway either.
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