CT Proposes Toll On I-684: Highway Robbery

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont wants to put tolls on roads in his state to raise revenue and pay for repairs. One of the roads he picked is I-684, the "interstate highway" that runs down the east side of Putnam and Westchester counties. That's Westchester County, New York.

The toll plaza would go in the 1.4 mile stretch of I-684 that is actually in Connecticut. That stretch does not include exits or entrances, by the way. The toll gantry would be sandwiched between the exit for the Westchester County Airport to the south and the exit for Armonk, home of IBM, to the north.

Folklore in Westchester has always held that the only reason I-684 crosses into and out of Connecticut at all was because its proponents wanted federal interstate highway funds to pay for it.

The highway runs from Brewster (in New York) to Rye Brook (in New York). The 1.4 mile section is owned by the Connecticut Department of Transportation and is maintained and repaired by the New York State Department of Transportation (reimbursed by Connecticut).

Lamont is laser-focused on re-establishing toll roads for revenues. His first proposal was for 50. This new plan is pared down. SEE: Gov. Lamont Proposes 14 Tolls: Here's Where He Wants To Put Them.

His announcement drew astonished and affronted laughter from folks on both sides of the border.

New York State Senator Pete Harckham, whose constituents in Dutchess, Putnam and Westchester counties use I-684 — some daily and others when they can't avoid it — said simply, “Governor Lamont’s plan to place a toll on I-684 is a nonstarter because it disproportionately impacts New York commuters. There are enough roads elsewhere in Connecticut to toll to fund infrastructure projects in Connecticut.”

The Middletown (Connecticut) Press called it "the highway toll equivalent of President Donald Trump declaring Mexico will pay for the border wall."

New Castle (New York) Town Supervisor Rob Greenstein saw another problem for New Yorkers — that many commuters would switch back to the antiquated Saw Mill River Parkway adding more traffic to that overburdened road. "This is nothing more than a money grab from New Yorkers," he said.

(The Saw Mill was immortalized in "Die Hard With a Vengeance" though it wasn't the movie that took out its tollbooth.)

But Lamont's spokesman Max Reiss pointed out that the stretch includes a bridge over the Byram River that needs repair. He told the Middletown Press, "Aren’t we supposed to minimize the impact on Connecticut residents? New York understands very well that Connecticut drivers help to support their infrastructure on a daily basis."

The other 13 tolls are proposed for Interstate 95 in Stamford, Norwalk, West Haven, East Lyme, and the Gold Star Bridge; on I-84 in Newtown, Waterbury, West Hartford and the Charter Oak Bridge; the Merritt Parkway in Norwalk; I-395 in Plainfield; and Route 9 in Middletown.