Local News
Tollways could be way to fund road projects in Wisconsin
New ideas being bounced around to pay for state’s infrastructure
Some of the Great Lakes states raise money by charging tolls on the highway.
Wisconsin does not, but toll roads are still a possible way for the state to finance highway repairs, according to Assembly minority leader Peter Barca.
But not everyone would approve the idea, Barca explains.
“People have an option,” the Kenosha Democrat told WIZM News while campaigning for Democrats in La Crosse this week. “You don’t have to take a toll road.
“When I grew up, my dad would never take a toll road because he said it was for tourists. Much to my chagrin, we went on the back roads, but people have an option there.”
Barca says the state has to find sources of road funding, so it doesn’t keep “kicking the can” through borrowing. Barca brought up this idea in February of 2014, as well.
Some of that funding would need to go toward bridges.
A couple of new bridges linking Wisconsin and Minnesota are finished or close to it.
The new Winona bridge will be opened Saturday and work is being completed on the I-90 bridge at Dresbach, Minn.
“You just look across the Mississippi River, you saw that bridge collapse in Minnesota and we certainly don’t want to see a repeat that,” Barca said of the I-35 bridge in Minneapolis, which fell nine years ago this month. “And we have a large number of bridges (in Wisconsin) that are deficient … and need vital repair.”
Barca says user fees have to be considered if funding for Wisconsin road projects is going to be increased.
Senator Jensen
September 2, 2016 at 11:24 am
Yes, more Walker-inspired nonsense to have the working people pay for the rich people’s roads.
Privatization creates worse infrastructure for higher costs. This has been proven again and again, yet Wisconsin Republicans will continually hand over our publicly-owned properties to their rich friends so that they can get even richer.
Who likes toll roads? Only the owners and sleazeballs like Walker who probably get a kickback.
R. St John
September 3, 2016 at 3:44 am
Please look at who is bringing up the toll roads, not Gov Walker,but a Democrat. This seems to come up every 5 to 10 years and never goes any where. If I remember correctly the road money disappeared during Gov. Doyles term to balance his budget. It never gets paid back and can;t be made up as everything keeps getting more expensive each year. During the 70s I-90 a toll road was paid for, I-5 was built to keep toll roads going in the state to our south. They never even pay for themselves let alone helping the rest of the states roads. They are run so efficiently that a tollway collector can make over $100,000 a year and nobody questions why. Everything the goverment runs turns into a money pit that the citizens have to pay for and still get lower service. The gas tax was voted in to go for veterans programs. what a great thing to vote for. The veterans never saw a penny, gas tax money should go for transportation. Toll roads don’t work for the benefit of the people.