Free Republic

Jersey City officials and a coalition of Hudson County bike groups have opposed the New Jersey Turnpike Authority’s plans to widen the Hudson County extension through Bayonne and Jersey City to the Holland Tunnel and replace the aging Newark Bay bridge. The opposition is based on concerns the project won’t alleviate congestion and would create more traffic and air pollution from vehicles cutting through Bayonne and Jersey City neighborhoods when traffic backs up on the extension. Bike advocates have a powerful ally, Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, who had a letter sent on the city’s behalf, asking the Turnpike Authority...

Feb. 26—Carbon County commissioners aren't keen on a plan to toll bridges along Interstate 80 to fund construction projects. Commissioner Chris Lukasevich on Thursday said Pennsylvania residents already pay the highest gas tax in the United States, and feels that state should better use existing funds. Commissioners Wayne Nothstein and Rocky Ahner also question the move, which would allow tolls on the Interstate 80 bridges over the Lehigh River at the Carbon-Luzerne county line for up to 30 years. Ahner worried about the average commuter, who has to pay the toll each way to go to work every day. "It...

The Great Bend-Hallstead exit (230) off Interstate 81 in Susquehanna County is due for repair in the next few years and PennDOT has proposed installing an electronic toll, that would use E-ZPass or pay-by-plate collection for drivers who pass through the area. The funds collected would be used to pay for the construction, maintenance, and operation of that bridge. We spoke with several people who use this section of highway about the proposed idea. "I guess to raise taxes to everybody is really hard, so I guess for the people using the road, then maybe that's a good idea," said...

From The Morning Call February 23, 2007 Blame for I-78 mess spreads PennDOT, PEMA leaders say county, local officials also at fault. By Christina Gostomski Call Harrisburg Bureau The top brass at PennDOT and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency accepted blame Thursday for the state's bungled response to the snow and ice storm that snarled traffic on Interstate 78, but said officials at the local and county levels were at fault as well. At a Senate hearing, Transportation Secretary Allen D. Biehler said ''inaccurate information within the PennDOT family,'' including repeated assurances from local Department of Transportation employees that there...