PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 3344 PRINTER'S NO. 3473
No. 581 Session of 2004
INTRODUCED BY GEIST AND McCALL, MARCH 8, 2004
AS REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION, HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES, AS AMENDED, MARCH 17, 2004
A RESOLUTION
1 Recognizing the responsibility of the Commonwealth to examine
2 the quality and efficiency of its State highway system; and
3 establishing a select committee to consider toll roads.
4 WHEREAS, Pennsylvania has always been a world leader and has
5 had a rich history of success in toll financing, beginning as
6 early as 1794 with the Philadelphia to Lancaster Turnpike, and <--
7 THIS HISTORY OF SUCCESS HAS continued as recently as the <--
8 CREATION OF THE Pennsylvania Turnpike was created as the first <--
9 all-weather superhighway in the nation, in 1940; and <--
10 WHEREAS, State highways are an integral part of the economic
11 and social livelihoods of Pennsylvania's citizens, and this
12 functioning State highway system is only as good as the
13 components which comprise it; and
14 WHEREAS, The State highway infrastructure, if ignored, can
15 severely impact the economic and environmental well-being of
16 this Commonwealth and its various communities; and
17 WHEREAS, The Commonwealth should periodically study any and
1 all opportunities to improve the safety, maintenance and
2 efficiency of all modes and methods of public and/or private
3 transportation available to citizens and travelers in and about
4 this Commonwealth; and
5 WHEREAS, Funding of Pennsylvania's highway system from
6 Federal, State and local government is not expected to
7 adequately finance the expanding demands to preserve and grow
8 our massive transportation facilities; and
9 WHEREAS, Modern roadway design and construction techniques
10 provide significantly enhanced environmental protection and
11 control measures for adjoining natural and manmade environments;
12 and
13 WHEREAS, The construction of new and enhanced roadways as
14 toll facilities is a means of providing a critical
15 transportation facility when it is needed, rather than when or
16 if funding becomes available through conventional funding
17 mechanisms; and
18 WHEREAS, Toll facilities more directly link user cost with
19 user benefit and provide a dedicated source of revenue to be
20 directed toward project cost recovery; and
21 WHEREAS, Implementation of electronic toll collection
22 technology can minimize the disruption to motorists often
23 associated with toll collection activities; and
24 WHEREAS, Toll facility electronic toll collection systems
25 provide the basis for an advanced traveler information system,
26 intelligent transportation system implementation and
27 collaborative electronic payment systems incorporating agencies
28 and services beyond toll road applications; and
29 WHEREAS, Toll facilities have proven to provide greater
30 opportunities for enhanced highway safety and operational levels
20040H0581R3473 - 2 -
1 of service, and the construction of user fee-based roadways
2 provides an equitable manner of distributing cost to both in-
3 State and out-of-State users; and
4 WHEREAS, Revenues collected from user fees can be used to
5 leverage conventional transportation financing mechanisms and
6 create innovative means of enhancing current revenue sources
7 without impacting anticipated authorization of funds; and
8 WHEREAS, Alternative transportation modes such as commuter
9 and intercity rail can benefit from highway toll revenues; and
10 WHEREAS, Specifically the Schuylkill Valley Metrorail
11 project, and other such projects in the Capital Region and
12 elsewhere in this Commonwealth, could be constructed and/or
13 operated from highway toll revenues; and
14 WHEREAS, Current Federal transportation authorization,
15 referred to as TEA-21, and likely subsequent versions encourage
16 the use of innovative finance methods, including tolls, to
17 address shortfalls of conventional revenue; and
18 WHEREAS, TEA-21 currently contains provisions for tolls to be
19 placed on existing highways through the use of pilot program
20 projects and value pricing alternatives; and
21 WHEREAS, Other states have identified the use of toll
22 roadways as a means of providing highway capacity at the time of
23 need rather than on a pay-as-you-go basis and have established
24 new state toll road agencies; therefore be it
25 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives, recognizing the
26 importance of maintaining safe highways and road conditions,
27 direct the Speaker to appoint a select committee on toll roads,
28 which committee shall be composed of four members of the
29 majority party and three members of the minority party and shall
30 include the chairman and minority chairman of the Transportation
20040H0581R3473 - 3 -
1 Committee of the House of Representatives; and be it further
2 RESOLVED, That the chairman of the Transportation Committee
3 shall serve as the select committee chairman; and be it further
4 RESOLVED, That the select committee at a minimum specifically
5 examine the financing of transportation projects, the saving of
6 public funds, the safety and maintenance features and the
7 economic development opportunities at public/private
8 transportation and private tolling facilities and recommend
9 alternatives to public funding of highway, road and overland
10 transportation facilities, including commuter and intercity rail
11 through highway tolls; and be it further
12 RESOLVED, That the committee may hold hearings AND take <--
13 testimony IN THIS COMMONWEALTH and make its investigations at <--
14 such places as it deems necessary in this Commonwealth and that <--
15 each member of the committee have power to administer oaths and
16 affirmations to witnesses appearing before the committee; and be
17 it further
18 RESOLVED, That the committee report to the House of
19 Representatives on its activities, findings and recommendations
20 within six months of adoption of this resolution and issue
21 interim reports to the House of Representatives as the committee
22 deems necessary.
B24L82BIL/20040H0581R3473 - 4 -