Austin Scott: Lift the toll on Ga. 400
The Republican campaign for governor continued at the state Capitol this afternoon.
State Rep. Austin Scott (R-Tifton), in an apparent attempt to attract the attention of metro Atlanta commuters, has introduced HB 1443, which would dismantle the State Road and Tollway Authority as well as the toll on Ga. 400 – which raises $22 million annually.
Quoting from his press release:
“When this project began, citizens and government agreed that the toll would come down when the road was paid for. Yet when Roy Barnes was governor, he directed a change in the legislation that will leave the toll up indefinitely.
“Now more than ever, Georgians should be concerned with their ever-expanding government. Why should taxpayers spend $20 million to run an agency that provides $2 million in road maintenance?”
But this is from an article written last March by my AJC colleague Ariel Hart:
Not only will drivers continue to pay a toll on Ga. 400 through 2011, but they may be paying even more tolls in the future.
As of this fiscal year, the authority owes $26.6 million in principal and interest on the debt incurred by building Ga. 400, said Cherie Gibson, spokeswoman for the State Road and Tollway Authority. That’s less than the $32 million the state has on hand, sitting in reserve accounts. That money represents tolls collected, as well as interest and investments from the toll money.
But Georgia can’t pay off the Ga. 400 debt, authority officials say, because it has to stick to a payment schedule that runs through 2011.
The 6.2-mile extension of Ga. 400 inside the perimeter opened in 1993, and was financed by tolls. Some neighborhoods may have despised the roadway, but it was a hit with drivers and the tolls poured in.
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127 comments Add your comment
Dagnabbit
March 23rd, 2010
4:16 pm
Marta started the same way. Biiggggg promises were made but it din’t work like promised. (wink wink) and every promise was changed in the same way. I agree with Scott and I think he is well worth looking at as a leader with ethics and morals. But then I am sure there are those who will tell me otherwise.
Robert
March 23rd, 2010
4:16 pm
Let’s not forget King Roy diverted funds from the Toll Road to build a bridge to Atlantic Station.
Time to Punt!
March 23rd, 2010
4:20 pm
The problem is that the politicians forget that they are elected to REPRESENT us and I for one do NOT feel represented by ANYONE in elected office. I will not vote for a single incumbent. If you’re in, you’re out! It’s simply time for a complete change. That is the ONLY way to break up the “good old boy” network and deal making and get back to the business of representing. We’re supposed to put words in their mouths, not the reverse!
Just the Facts
March 23rd, 2010
4:22 pm
Robert:
Just The Facts. Roy did not divert the funds to build a bridge to Atlantic Station. He diverted $10 million to purchase a piece of real estate for a potential future commuter rail station. SRTA still owns the property and the most recent appraisal values the land at several million more than the State paid for it. So, while this was not a legitimate use of Ga 400 toll money, it was a pretty good real estate investment. One thing Roy knows how to do is make money, and that ain’t a bad thing.
smoochies
March 23rd, 2010
4:22 pm
Everything that happens be it in Georgia or in another state is not President Obama’s fault. Stay on the subject. If all the bonds of been paid, then end the toll.
wesleywhatwhat
March 23rd, 2010
4:23 pm
i can’t remember the last time a republican from GA had a decent idea that benefitted the citizens of this state, but i support scott on this issue.
rdh
March 23rd, 2010
4:26 pm
Intown says “Dont fall for this. ”
Fall for what? Who Austin Scott is or what his motives are are irrelevant. What is relevant is that GOVERNMENT agreed that the toll booths would come down when the road had been paid. And now, the road has been paid. Either the government can be trusted or it can’t.
It appears that it can’t. But, this does serve as a lesson to all of the other toll projects in Georgia (such as those HOV lanes in Gwinnett). Once the toll begins, it never goes away. Do not allow tolls on pavement that has already been laid. Permit tolls only on NEW construction.
rdh
March 23rd, 2010
4:27 pm
P.S. all who are reading this: remember what Roy Barnes has done with this project. Do not allow him to fool you twice.
Chris
March 23rd, 2010
4:29 pm
CrazyInGa…that is some good solid dumb right there.
Jason
March 23rd, 2010
4:30 pm
Just the Facts is pretty much correct on the bond details.
The tolls aren’t being kept just for extra money, they’re being kept because SRTA is seen as a way to counter act the power of the bloated inefficient DOT. SRTA is under the control of the governor, DOT is not. Almost every year there is a couple of bills giving SRTA more responsibilities because DOT is a huge black hole into which no one knows what happens to anything that enters.
Removing the toll booth from GA400 would not eliminate all SRTA employees. A majority of them could be let go, sure, but not all. Most of them aren’t even state employees; they’re contractors from one of the parking lot operators. With HOT lanes coming into being in a few years, all of the SRTA infrastructure used for managing GA400 will once again be needed. It would be wasteful to get rid of all of that and the institutional expertise.
Get rid of the tolls as soon as possible. I’m not sure if the bond agreements allow for funds to be paid from an escrow fund (there might be worries of it being raided even though that’s not suppose to be possible) but regardless of if it is this year, next year, or 2013, the state must pay off the bonds according to schedule.
That doesn’t mean SRTA should be merged into the already bloated DOT. SRTA existed for years before there was a GA400. It didn’t have any staff and the board met once or twice a year to discuss toll projects, of which GA400 and the bridge to St. Simons Island were the only two built. The Authority can be kept as an independent entity free of DOT control with minimal expense.
Let’s do this smart and not end up costing the state millions more due to someone’s haste.
ILovetheToll
March 23rd, 2010
4:34 pm
I love the toll. It keeps all of you off 400 and the road clear.
Dagnabbit
March 23rd, 2010
4:38 pm
I like the word legitimate. It wasn’t legitimate then and it is not legitimate now. I like those who try to follow the law and keep their word. They be a rare breed in Jawja politicking.. NoOx Noodeal.
rdh
March 23rd, 2010
4:41 pm
To Ian… I care. If you (or anyone else) doesn’t think $260 is enough to make a difference, send your $260 to me. OH…. so it DOES make a difference when it is coming out of YOUR pocket?
Tyler Durden
March 23rd, 2010
4:46 pm
Hey Independent Thinker, you’re about to become dependent on the State. Let me destroy your arguments one by one:
1 “So many of you proclaim this is a “Chiristian” country – is that what your religion teaches you: not to help those in need. ” Do NOT confuse Christian charity with coerced extraction of earnings through taxation. They are totally different things. Giving voluntarily to people in need is Christian. Taking from those that do and giving to those that don’t at the point of a gun (this is how the IRS operates), is tyrannical.
2. “This is America, one of the richest countries in the world! ” – How do you think that happened? Because of government control? No, it is because of free enterprise. Look around you. Everything (including the computer your typed your moronic comment on, to the car you drive, the home you live in, the sheets you sleep in, the food you consume), is all CREATED by private industry. The reason for our prosperity is the ingenuity that exists in the private sector, that’s it. Government only inhibits innovation.
3. “Should we do away with Social Security, Medicare, public schools, transportation, etc.?” Every one of these programs is either going broke or in terrible condition financially. These programs are highly inefficient and unsustainable long-term, unless you want to become like “the rest of the western world” and go completely broke (see: Greece) propping them up.
This country was built on the principles of liberty and self-reliance. Quit trying to change us into something we were never intended to be. That is all.
Dawgbone
March 23rd, 2010
4:51 pm
I care too..any money taking without proper representation is wrong. We are lazy and should make our voices heard. It is time to be active during these times of tax ‘em more….car tag, gas, groceries, more on cigarettes, etc, etc….our forefathers died over this type of taxation..
Dunwoody Journal Constitution
March 23rd, 2010
4:55 pm
Did the AJC ever keep tabs on our local, state, and federal government? It’s been so long it’s hard to remember when our fair city HAD a newspaper.
So are the employees complaining about paying the toll since you losers are moving to Dunwoody? Imagine that! A major-metro newspaper that ISN’T located in it’s namesake. Might as well be called the Kalamazoo Journal-Constitution.
PS: Who is the publisher this week?
green green
March 23rd, 2010
4:56 pm
Scott for Gov! My man Scott will be on the GOP gubernatorial primary ballot yall.
Unitetogether
March 23rd, 2010
4:59 pm
This is just a cheap trick from a desperate politician who’ll say anything to get elected as governor. I guarantee once it comes down to it, though, it will never happen, or at least not when he says it will.
Alphare
March 23rd, 2010
5:01 pm
Tyler Durden,
If Christian charity is enough, why a lot of people go un-insured then? your argument is coming to full circle don’t you think?
Steve C
March 23rd, 2010
5:03 pm
CrazyInGA
March 23rd, 2010
2:55 pm
If you don’t want to pay, take the exit prior to the toll, idiot.
You missed the point: when the 400 extension was sold to the public, it was under the premise that the tolls would be in place only until the construction was paid for. Now, the elected officials can’t bear the thought of giving up e revenue stream. Just one of many examples of governments saying one thing and doing another.
Just the Facts
March 23rd, 2010
5:04 pm
Jason:
Just The facts. No one has said for certain that SRTA will be the operator for the I-85 HOT lanes. If the complete incompetence shown by Gena and SRTA on the recent technology procurement is any indication of how SRTA operates, then I say SHUT THEM DOWN TODAY! Gena just selected a toll technology for the I-85 HOT lane that IS NOT COMPATABLE WITH ANY OTHER TOLL CARD CURRENTLY IN USE IN AMERICA. That’s right folks, the brilliant, non-bloated management at SRTA picked a toll card that is incompatable with Ga 400 so drivers will have to have 2 toll cards. Plus, any revenue from out of state drivers will be LOST because Gena’s new system won’t work with any other card in AMERICA!!! Pure Genius.
Why would such brilliant management do something so stupid you ask? Well, the vendor who sold SRTA the system, was Transcore, who just happens to be represented by lobbyist Bruce Bowers, who is best buds with Gena. And I suspect they were direct/indirect contributors to a certain campaign for Congress from the 9th District. Hmmmm. See how everything works in Sonny’s world??? Now go count your quarters, Jason.
Speed Racer
March 23rd, 2010
5:04 pm
Independent Thinker: Yes, we should do away with Social Security, Medicare,
public schools because it is not the role of the goverment to take money from
one citizen, using force, to pay for the [retirement/healthcare/education] of
another citizen. As for Christianity, yes we are called on to help others but
that should be OUR undertaking…not the governments.
Sandy Spring For Roy Barnes
March 23rd, 2010
5:05 pm
What do this have to do with Obama …watch out for the tea party
Really?
March 23rd, 2010
5:06 pm
Do any of you honestly think that the state is going to give up $22 million annually and during a severe economic downturn in which excess revenues are few and far between when, as one poster stated earlier, “the DOT is a black hole into which no one knows what happens to anything that enters” (mainly money)? As a matter of fact the state may just distract you with something else to make you forget while they can keep the tolls on and the GA 400 money flowing.
Georgia Voters and Motorists: “Why haven’t those tolls been removed from Georgia 400? What are you doing with that money?”
State of Georgia: “LOOK! OVER THERE, OBAMACARE!”
Georgia Voters and Motorists: “Where?”
State of Georgia: “Works like a charm everytime.”
dd
March 23rd, 2010
5:11 pm
Who’s idea was it not to be able to get directly on 85 North from 400 South?
Why should we have to get off 400 and sit at red lights to find 85 North?
Can someone please explain to me why I can’t get directly on 85 North from 400 South?
Really?
March 23rd, 2010
5:11 pm
“If the complete incompetence shown by Gena and SRTA on the recent technology procurement is any indication of how SRTA operates, then I say SHUT THEM DOWN TODAY!”
Just the Facts: That kind of incompetence is usually cause for a big fat promotion at most levels of government. I say Gena Evans for Governor!
ugaaccountant
March 23rd, 2010
5:12 pm
Jason – You’ve just identified an agency that can be eliminated 100%. GRTA serves no function. No toll roads should exist, period. We’ve got to stop this government growth and toll roads are something we could easily kill in it’s infancy here in GA.
In addition, the fact that our state government doesn’t keep it’s direct promises should be a clear cause of alarm to everyone. No matter what your views on any particular issue, this kind of blatant lies cannot be tolearated. Austin Scott has just won my vote without spending a single dollar. Funny how that works.
george
March 23rd, 2010
5:13 pm
I have been paying this toll every day that I go to work for 7 years. If I want to get to work on time I have to use 400. Now I go home on surface streets because 400 is so backed up in the evening. I don’t think it is right for average folks like me to pay a toll for a road that has been paid for and the money is now used for other road projects. Now I wouldn’t mind paying the toll if the DOT would use the money to fix the badly designed intersection of I-85 and 400. That whole thing was a design snafu from day 1! That would be worth my $1.00!
Gen Neyland
March 23rd, 2010
5:14 pm
Florida’s state goverment actually honored it’s promise on original intent regarding one of it’s tollways a few years back and tore the dang thing down when the project was paid for. GA politicians will tell us GA400 will forever be growing. 4-5 lanes of traffic funneled down to 1 by the time it dumps onto the connector. Brilliant, especially on a Friday…
Idiot Detector
March 23rd, 2010
5:16 pm
Any idiot using the term “Obamacare” is just that… an idiot! It just proves that you’re a non-thinker, and have to listen to Neal, Sean, Rush, and all of the other stupid Republican talk shows for your answers. You’re a like bunch of sorry little sore losers. You didn’t get picked to play, so now you want to take your ball and go home. You little crybaby, whiners! And Republican women shouldn’t even be allowed to speak. They sound dumber than most of them look. A lot of so-called Republicans don’t have a pot to piss in, but they’d rather stay on their little losing bandwagon, so they have something to talk about. I detect a lot of idiots in this country…
The Stuff
March 23rd, 2010
5:18 pm
If you don’t like the toll, stop at the North Springs MARTA station and ride it into town. I kinda like the toll because it cuts down on a lot of the traffic headed into/out of downtown. Makes my ride easier than say I-75. There are plenty of ways around 400, just look into it. Someone does need to legislate where the excess money is spent though. Extend MARTA to Milton, up 75, south towards the Zoo, and towards Tucker (all as orignally planned). http://world.nycsubway.org/us/atlanta/marta-provisions.html
I say if you are going to cut the toll, fix the welfare system, immigration reform, improve education, etc. All of which will never happen. If you got kids, I feel sorry for their future in the state of Georgia. Day laborer will always be a good skillset to have though.
winston smith
March 23rd, 2010
5:18 pm
please send 1 million to me.
kind regards.
john
March 23rd, 2010
5:18 pm
Beavis and But-head are alive and well. Just read above.
sugarfoot
March 23rd, 2010
5:25 pm
I don’t use toll roads. I don’t even eat toll house cookies!
Jason
March 23rd, 2010
5:26 pm
Just the Facts, how about we stick to being civil and leave the attacks to the partisans?
I am in total agreement with you on the issue of not using the same toll technology for the HOT lanes that are used for GA400. But the director of the authority is not the same as the staff. Perdue has gone through at least four different directors at SRTA so it’s not like losing another one would be a big deal. I’m more concerned about the loss of institutional knowledge of how to operate a tollway and how to use the in place infrastructure. By selecting a different technology for the HOT lanes, a large chunk of the current infrastructure is no longer a reason to keep the staff around.
I am not try to argue that the toll on GA400 should be kept forever. If the bond agreement is such that money could be put into escrow today and pay off the bonds when due, I’m all for it. If I’m a bond holder though, I wouldn’t trust the government of Georgia for a second to not raid that escrow fund due to “economic crisis”. I’d want those tollbooths in place since that is the best guarantee of getting paid. Luckily I am not a bond holder and would be happy to see the tollbooths go.
What I would not be happy to see is the state dismantle SRTA today and have to rebuild it two or three years from now. Also because SRTA has other responsibilities than GA400, those jobs would simply move over to DOT rather than be eliminated. Should the HOT lanes be run by DOT? Did anyone see the audit of DOT? I don’t want them anywhere near toll dollars!
How about Rep. Scott find out if the escrow solution is viable. If so, advocate for that. Reduce SRTA’s headcount to what is required for the state’s needs going forward rather than throwing the baby out with the bathwater.
Really?? Independent thinker?
March 23rd, 2010
5:26 pm
Independent Thinker – you are hardly what you say you are. You espouse progressive filth (which actually is Marxist filth but you guys don’t have the balls to admit it). I love the way progressives are now saying we (we being non progressives) arent acting like Christians because we don’t like their socialist movement. Your liberal friends time in power will be ending soon. Praise be God!
Really?
March 23rd, 2010
5:27 pm
dd: That’s just the problem, it was no one’s idea to not be able to get from 400 south to 85 north and from 85 south to 400 north. If I were completely cynical (which I just might be by now), I would assume that the concept of those connections never came up and that Cheshire Bridge to Buford to Sidney Marcus was intended to be the connection for 85 S to 400 N all along. No, scratch that, I should probably assume that the Sidney Marcus connection was thought of much later, probably after the planning for 400 was almost completed (”Oooh, I know, let’s build an on-ramp from Sidney Marcus to 400 North, that’ll be really swell!”).
Actually dd, I think that the missing links from 85 to 400 and vice versa were planned to be apart of the project, but the funding mechanism for the 400 project only allowed for 85 N-400N and 400S to 85S to be built at the time. The planners of the project were just left to hope that the funding for the 85 S to 400 N and 400 S to 85 N ramps would someway and somehow materialize at some unknown date in the future, a date which still happens to be unknown.
ugaaccountant
March 23rd, 2010
5:32 pm
Should the HOT lanes be run by DOT?
Nobody wanted HOT lanes in the first place
Leave it as-is, we are in a budget crisis, remember?
March 23rd, 2010
5:32 pm
I pay my dollar every day on my cruise card. Georgia needs the money…it’s the least I can do to help. If we are laying off State Troopers and Teachers, now is not the time to start cutting off sources of revenue….duh.
/b/No to socialism!!
March 23rd, 2010
5:33 pm
This morning I was awoken by my alarm clock powered by electricity generated by the public power monopoly regulated by the US Department of Energy. I then took a shower in the clean water provided by the municipal water utility. After that, I turned on the TV to one of the FCC regulated channels to see what the national weather service of the National Oceonagraphic and Atmospheric Administration determined the weather was going to be like using satellites designed, built, and launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. I watched this while eating my breakfast of US Department of Agriculture inspected food and taking the drugs which have been determined safe by the Food and Drug Administration.
At the appropriate time as regulated by the US Congress and kept accurate by the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the US Naval Observatory, I get into my National Highway Traffic Safety Administration approved automobile and set out to work on the roads built by the local, state, and federal Departments of Transportation, possibly stopping to purchase additional fueld of a quality level determined by the Environmental Protection Agency, using legal tender issued by the Federal Reserve Bank. On the way out the door I deposit any mail I have to be sent out via the US Postal Service and drop the kids off at the public school.
After work, I drive my NHTSA car back home on the DOT roads, to house which has not burned down in my absence because of the state and local building codes and Fire Marshall’s inspection, and which has not been plundered of all its valuables thanks to the local Police Department.
I then log on to the Internet which was developed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Administration and post on freerepublic.com Fox News, and the AJC forums about how SOCIALISM in medicine is BAD because the government can’t do anything right.
MrHughes
March 23rd, 2010
5:37 pm
Tyler Durden, the U.S. became one of the richest countries in the world because of free labor not free enterprise.
MrHughes
March 23rd, 2010
5:40 pm
Just my $0.02… I don’t see why people are so riled up about $0.50.
It’s not like money from GA-400 is being used to go to Cancun for MTV Spring Break. There are much greater ethical violations going on down at the Dome than this. Case and point… Glenn Richarson, who should actually be in jail right now. We argue about $0.50, which is our choice to pay, while people get away with shenanigans.
DMACK
March 23rd, 2010
5:40 pm
I’m for a smaller government………especially if a smaller government means a reduction in services. Who needs toll roads, water and sewer services, police and fire services, and all of the other useless agencies that create a tax burden for its citizens. GIVE ME A BREAK….. If you really want to reduce taxes…..make all political positions ….UNPAID.
Just the Facts
March 23rd, 2010
5:42 pm
Jason, Old buddy, you started being uncivil by your unwarranted attacks on GDOT. Again, Just The Facts, have you actually read the GDOT audit? I doubt it seriously. Or did you just rely on Gena’s propaganda and her WSB-TV hatchet job?
The simple fact is: NOT ONE SINGLE PENNY IS UNACCOUNTED FOR. Nobody stole,misappropriated, or lost a single penny of taxpayer money. That is more than I can say for SRTA who just wasted $1.5 million on a tolling system that is not compatable with any other system in America. And what was SRTA’s response?? “Well, we bought the cheapest system we could find”. The Fact Is the money they will lose to out of state driver would have more than made up the difference in costs. Clean up your own house before you start jumping on somebody else. Peace, Bro!
Really?
March 23rd, 2010
5:47 pm
ugaaccountant:
“Should the HOT lanes be run by DOT?”
Only if you want them to be run into the ground!
I’m not crazy about the concept to converting existing free lanes to HOT Lanes or “Lexus Lanes”. I say if you’re going to build HOT Lanes then build REAL HOT LANES and not a whimpy conversion of an existing lane. I say take a page out of California or Texas’ book and build at least three elevated reversible HOT lanes (or maybe two or three 24-hour elevated HOT Lanes in each direction) over the medians of I-85, I-75, I-20 and, especially, I-285 that add to the existing capacity of the freeway and take the existing HOV lanes and convert them to regular traffic lanes open to all motorists. Just an idea.
Jumpin_Jak_Flash
March 23rd, 2010
5:49 pm
I think they should raise the toll from .50 cents to 5 dollars, and let those who cant afford it carpool. Be nice and much cleaner and maybe get rid of some of the smog. You deserve what you get and what you got. Nothing I have read in the comments here are anything but a bunch of blowhards, that will never do anything but corrupt our goverment even more. Welcome to Thugatlanta goverment and be sure to have stands on the side of roads that sell the tourist and rich people scrating there behinds and picking there nose beer on Sundays to. Hicks everywhere, guess what, look in the mirrow, you one of them. Love That Smog, eat them Grits fat boys and girls. yall have fun now, you here?
Howell
March 23rd, 2010
5:52 pm
I think they ought to leave the toll, and add tolls at the state line on all the interstates crossing our state. Get that money from the tourists, before they spend it in Florida instead! But here’s my favorite part of Scott’s statement:
“The bottom line is the people expect their contract with the government to be a bilateral contract, where the government does what it says it’s going to do,” Scott said.
Tell it to the teachers…
Uncle Tom
March 23rd, 2010
5:58 pm
Speaking of short cuts, is that bridge still closed on P’tree-Dunwoody?
matt
March 23rd, 2010
6:20 pm
The city,county,state and the U.S. Government is failing and our local elected representatives are worried about a 50 cent toll that could be used to fund police and fire rescue . I think taking the funds from the toll and applying it to other parts of the state and local goverment would br a better idea . As long as the goverment could pull it’s head out of it’s a– and use the money wisely. Or we could just keep printing money until we are blue in the face like Obama. This country needs to get it together and get back to the basics .
Road Scholar
March 23rd, 2010
6:22 pm
DD and Really: During the design of the SR 400 Extension from I 285 to I 85 , ramps were laid out to allow for the connection to/from I 85 north. The reason they were not designed and constructed was: 1. The COA agreed not to fight the road if they were left out. They didn’t support it either. and 2. There was not enough money to construct the ramps with the toll projections at the time the financing was decided.
There is presently a project in design that connects the two roads. The layout is very similar to the ramp layout done long ago (1988). Maybe if some of you had attended the public meeting and/or expressed your desire to have the ramps implemented, maybe it could become a priority in this region.
Jason/Just the facts: You are correct in your history of how the tolls were implemented and the construction /operation of the project, except:
The total cost was around $360M counting the expensive land that had to be purchased to build the project. Part of that money came from MARTA for their corridor’s construction and land. They paid 100% of their track, communication etc. beyond the grading and drainage and the median barrier. This cost did not include the acres of land purchased by Fulton County to preserve the corridor since 1956.
Believe me. I spent 5 years through the design, public info, financing, and construction. Some of the “first time ” items were resupporting a 6 level parking deck with daily usage, the toll plaza with electronic tolling (still examined by states and countries as a placeholder in toll design), coordination with a rapid transit corridor, extensive landscaping to mitigate neighborhood impacts, a design of a detention basin /wetland at Lenox and the single point interchange at the Buckhead Loop.