New CT Tolls Plan: Here's Everything You Need To Know

HARTFORD, CT — Senate Democrats released the draft of a heavy truck-only toll bill, which includes the location of a dozen bridge gantries and proposed rates. A public hearing is scheduled for Friday at 1 p.m. at the state capitol.

The bill would mandate that all toll funds collected go to the Special Transportation Fund. The base initial rate would be between $6 and $13 per toll with discounts for trucks with Connecticut EZ-Passes. Trucks that go back and forth between a toll gantry would only be charged once per day for each direction of travel.

A truck driver could pay between $30 and $65 one-way if it were to travel across all of I-95 in Connecticut under the current plan assuming it had an out-of-state transponder.

Tolls would apply to large commercial trucks between Class 8 and Class 13. Class 8 trucks have 3 or 4 axles and Class 13 trucks have 7 or more axles.

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The bill would also establish a Transportation Policy Council that would establish future rate increases that would be tied to the rate of inflation or the construction cost index. The council would consist of a mix of appointments from majority and minority parties in the General Assembly, state commissioners and governor appointments.

The locations of the gantries are:

• I-84 in Newtown and Southbury
• I-84 and Route 8 in Waterbury
• I-84 in West Hartford
• Meeting of I-91 and Route 15 at the Charter Oak Bridge in Hartford/East Hartford
• I-95 in Stamford
• I-95 in Westport
• I-95 in West Haven
• I-95 in East Lyme
• I-95 over Thames River in New London/Groton
• I-395 in Plainfield
• I-684 in Greenwich (This one upset New York lawmakers)
• Route 8 south of the I-84 interchange in Waterbury

A vote is expected sometime next week during a special legislative session, according to CT News Junkie.

Gov. Ned Lamont predicts that the tolls will raise $180 million per year, according to the CT Mirror. Some state legislators previously predicted it would bring in between $150 to $175 million in revenue per year. Lamont is angling for a stable revenue source that could be used to pay for low-interest federal transportation loans.

Rhode Island has a similar toll system and is in the process of building toll gantries. The state has suffered some delays in getting the full system up and running. Gov. Gina Raimondo reduced the expected toll revenue from $25 million to $18.5 million for the current fiscal year in her budget, according to the Providence Journal.

Rhode Island’s system has 13 planned truck-only tolls with five currently running and another seven expected to be completed in June.

Lamont said last week that he is confident that Connecticut won’t have issues getting the gantries completed on schedule.

Republicans Question Car Toll Protections

There is some language in the Connecticut bill that includes some assurances that cars wouldn’t be tolled, however, there is already some debate about whether the protections are strong enough.

There is a provision within the draft that could allow changes in the middle of a fiscal after an emergency declaration by the governor and a 3/5ths vote by both the state Senate and House.

Republican Senate leader Len Fasano said under his interpretation there could be tolls on all trucks and cars within two years. Bond holders wouldn't mind if cars and more trucks are added to tolls, he said. Fasano also said he believes the 3/5ths legislative vote wouldn't be necessary under the bonding language.

"You haven’t hurt the bond holders, you have improved their position, so that type of safety feature if you would really doesn’t work at all,” he said during a Tuesday press conference.

Fasano also said Lamont violated his "debt diet" pledge by adding more available bond money in an effort to get more votes for the plan. He also had an issue with an unelected transportation council having power over toll rates.

Below is the language from the draft that has to do with protections from car tolling:

(a) For each fiscal year during which special tax obligation bonds issued pursuant to section 13b-74 to 13b-77, inclusive, on and after July 1, 2020, and prior to July 1, 2022, shall be outstanding, the state of Connecticut shall not charge tolls for any class of vehicle other than large commercial trucks, as defined in section 2 of this act, traveling over the bridges described in section 2 of this act. The state of Connecticut does hereby pledge to and agree with the holders of any bonds, notes and other obligations issued pursuant to subsection (b) of this section that no public or special act of the General Assembly taking effect on or after July 1, 2020, and prior to July 1, 2030, shall alter the obligation to comply with the provisions of this section, until such bonds, notes or other obligations, together with the interest thereon, are fully met and discharged, provided nothing in this subsection shall preclude such alteration (1) if and when adequate provision shall be made by law for the protection of the holders of such bonds, or (2) (A) if and when the Governor declares an emergency or the existence of extraordinary circumstances, in which the provisions of section 4-85 of the general statutes are invoked, (B) at least three-fifths of the members of each chamber of the General Assembly vote to alter such required compliance during the fiscal year for which the emergency or existence of extraordinary circumstances are determined,293and (C) any such alteration is for the fiscal year in progress only.

(b) The Treasurer shall include this pledge and undertaking in special tax obligation bonds, notes and other obligations issued on or after July 1, 2020, and prior to July 1, 2022, provided such pledge and undertaking shall not apply to refunding bonds, notes and other obligations issued under this section.