Widespread Tolling Expected for Puget Sound
From The News Tribune:
http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/Viaduct/
The Puget Sound Regional Councils Transportation 2040 plan recommends that the core freeway system be tolled to cover the cost of projects. They also recommend that the fuel tax should be replaced with a tax based on miles traveled.
While I know the idea of tolls and taxes are distasteful, there needs to be a way to cover the costs of road maintenance, construction and expansion. Current funding streams just don’t work. And in all honesty, this shifts the burden of the costs to the end users. Don’t like the cost? Don’t drive, or drive far, or use those roads.
These techniques have proven very successful in other countries and even in the US.
Ben