There are a lot of flaws with the governor’s toll-hike plan, as I point out in my Dispatches column and Charles Stiles points out in this column, but I have to wonder whether Gov. Jon Corzine is really ready to listen.
He has asked for alternatives, but how willing is he to consider them?
The Tri-State Transportation Committee offers a way to cut down on the transportation costs — basically, by rethinking the state’s approach to what it spends its cash on. Most interesting to me is this:
Include a fix-it-first mandate in the asset monetization legislation. To ensure that New Jersey continues to reduce its backlog of roads and bridges in poor condition, fix-it-first legislation should be included within the asset monetization plan. The legislation could require that 4% or less of transportation dollars raised by the plan go to expanding roadways, for example. Currently, less than 3% of NJDOT’s transportation program is spent on expansion, a trend that should extend to the other transportation agencies in the state.
The state has a woeful record of keeping its roads, bridges and rail lines up to day — as the governor has acknowledged — so it needs to make this a priority and enshrine this priority in state law.
The governor also should follow the prescription offered by New Jersey Policy Perspective and include a gas tax increase in the plan. As I’ve said, the state may need to raise tolls to cover rising costs, do some needed maintenance and even pay down some of the toll road debt, but a mix of other options — gas tax, income tax, budget cuts, consolidation, etc. — has to be on the table. Solely relying on tolls is foolish politically and generally unfair.
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Hank Kalet 