CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - Tolls on the West Virginia Turnpike should be raised to finance up to $1 billion in bonds for statewide highway construction and maintenance, a state commission said in a report released Wednesday.
The final report of the West Virginia Blue Ribbon Commission on Highways now goes to Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin. He appointed the group of lawmakers, state and local officials, industry and labor representatives, college professors and citizens to develop a long-term plan for West Virginia’s highway system.
Tolls on the 88-mile turnpike that runs through four southern counties had been scheduled to come off in 2019. The commission recommended that the state keep the toll booths intact.
The final report calls for toll increases of 10 percent to 25 percent effective July 2016, depending on the amount of bonds sold, while rates for passenger cars with EZPass accounts would remain unchanged for five years. Turnpike drivers currently pay $2 at each booth, while commercial vehicles pay $6.75.
The panel also recommended increasing the state motor vehicle sales tax by 1 percentage point to 6 percent, raising Division of Motor Vehicles registration and licensing fees, redirecting state tax revenue from items such as batteries and automobile parts, and implementing registration fees for alternative-fuel and electric vehicles. Those changes would raise an additional $141 million annually.
Under the recommendations, West Virginia “will be able to construct road projects now that would otherwise not be completed for at least 20 years under current funding scenarios,” the report said.
The report noted more than 7,000 bridges on the state’s highway system have an average age of nearly 40 years, while the average design life of a bridge is typically 50 years. More than one-third of these bridges are in need of repair or replacement.
A recent report by the transportation research group TRIP said 29 percent of the state’s major rural roads were in poor condition in 2013, the sixth highest rate in the nation.
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