By Tessa Roy, WPRO News
The state Department of Transportation said in the first month of truck only tolling, 188,815 vehicles were tolled, more than their 177,000 vehicle estimate. That brought in $625,989, which was $27,322 more than RIDOT anticipated.
“With one full month of operation under our belts, we feel confident that the tractor trailer truck only tolling system is working as expected,” said Director Peter Alviti. “The data we are seeing is in line with what we had estimated and all is going well. We are seeing a stable tolling system. We have and will continue to monitor the system closely.”
RIDOT said a consulting company estimated 300 tractor trailers per day would divert to Route 3 instead of passing through two gantry locations on I-95, but actual counts showed an average of four more trucks per day traveling on Route 3 after tolling began. As that number is so small, RIDOT said, “this may or may not be due to diversion.”
Both the American and Rhode Island Trucking Associations, as well as three other trucking companies, are suing over the tolls, saying the program is designed to be discriminatory and is unconstitutional. RIDOT has said it’s prepared to defend the program and is moving forward with plans for ten more gantries.
RIDOT recently submitted the Environmental Assessment (EA) for the next gantry locations to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), and will accept public comment on this EA until August 11. RIDOT and will hear public comments at meetings on July 27.
