LETTERS

A plan to finance road repairs

Posted 7/15/15

To the Editor:

In the June 23, 2015 Providence Journal article, “Toll plan moving too fast for some,” DOT Director Peter Alviti points out that only “20 bridge reconstruction/replacement …

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LETTERS

A plan to finance road repairs

Posted

To the Editor:

In the June 23, 2015 Providence Journal article, “Toll plan moving too fast for some,” DOT Director Peter Alviti points out that only “20 bridge reconstruction/replacement projects [are] being contemplated for tolling.” Tolls can “only create the revenue needed to fix the specified bridges we are going to be fixing.”  These facts indicate that the cost to build the required tolling infrastructure, the cost to provide tax credits, fuel and property tax rebates and the direct grants to shipping companies and the cost to pay the bonding interest fees would be so large that very little money would be left to repair or replace the 150 Rhode Island bridges that are structurally deficient.

The best way to fund the repair or replacement of Rhode Island’s structurally deficient bridges is to put a yearly $20 dollar surcharge on each vehicle liability insurance policy sold in Rhode Island, to increase the fuel tax by three cents per gallon and to put a $10 surcharge on each vehicle registration fee. These actions would raise $43 million each year to fund the required bridge repair projects. The average vehicle owner, who buys 600 gallons of gas per year in Rhode Island, would pay $43 per year in bridge repair charges.  

To get large truck owners, whose trucks pass through Rhode Island, to pay their fair share of the bridge repair cost, I would allow two truck stops to be built at the present rest areas on Interstate 295 in Lincoln. For large truck owners who buy their diesel fuel at these new truck stops, I would reduce the fuel tax by ten cents per gallon. Instead of passing through Rhode Island, many large trucks would stop at these new truck stops in Lincoln to fill up their 100-gallon tanks. For every 100 gallons purchased by each large truck driver, Rhode Island would receive $22 in fuel tax. This action would also reduce the number of large trucks that use I-95 in downtown Providence which will increase the service life of the new bridges now being built in downtown Providence.

The BRIDGE Act, now being worked on in the United States Congress, will provide Rhode Island with approximately $40 million each year in low interest loans to fund bridge repairs and replacement costs.   The large truck fuel tax revenue raised each year should bring the total amount available each year to fund these bridge projects to over a $100 million and most of this money would be spent actually repairing and replacing structurally deficient bridges. Construction industry employment would quickly return to pre-recession levels and Rhode Island’s income tax, sales tax and fuel tax revenue would also greatly increase.  Elimination of the car tax might be possible.   

Kenneth Berwick

Smithfield

Comments

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  • Wuggly

    Just put the extra $30.00 on the registration fee, why would you put this on the insurance company to collect. Unless truckers are going into Southern Boston or the Cape Cod area why would they bother to come through RI when they can take 395 through Connecticut and bypass RI altogether? The only trucks that will be paying the tax are ones dropping cargo in RI, which means that the cost will just be passed on to RI Citizens again.

    Fuel tax lower it for everyone, have neighboring state citizens fuel up here. Make less per gallon but you would sell more gallons. While talking taxes lower them all, same reason, make less per item sell more items. Look at the bootleg cigarette problem in RI. We pay for a task force to stop it. Lower the tax get rid of the task force let the other states worry about bootlegging into their state.

    As for truck stops and rest areas RI spent millions on a rest area that had banker's hours and closed it. The brilliant bureaucrats put the thing past where people coming from the south might want to exit to avail themselves of the beaches and coastline. The other rest area we have is on 295 on the way out of the State. We no welcome areas open and don't have any we can open south bound.

    Make rest/service/information (see New Jersey and Connecticut) areas that way people fuel up cars, themselves and rest a bit even on their way through. Who knows with a little welcoming information they may stop and stay a bit on their way back.

    Sunday, July 19, 2015 Report this