Panels Weigh Transportation Needs ; Having More Toll Roads and Bridges is a Possibility As the State Deals With a Highway-Fund Shortfall.

By SUSAN M. COVER Blethen Maine News Service

Sen. John Martin remembers when he paid a toll to drive across the Memorial Bridge in Maine’s capital.

The Eagle Lake Democrat, a longtime House Speaker and a legislator for more than 40 years, said those times have changed, of course. But maybe, he said, the state needs to consider going back to a system that forces those who use the roads and bridges to pay for them.

Although Memorial Bridge opened in 1950 as a toll span, collections stopped in 1967.

“It was 10 cents a trip,” said Martin, assistant Senate majority leader. “Then all of a sudden the people of Augusta didn’t want to pay fees. The only ways we have (to raise revenues) are taxes, tolls or fees.”

Martin’s comments came in response to concerns raised by the chairman of the Legislature’s Transportation Committee, Sen. Dennis Damon, D-Trenton.

Damon told members of the Appropriations Committee Thursday that if nothing is done, the state highway fund will fall short by $162 million a year for the next 20 years.

“The need is much greater than the revenues coming in,” he said.

The state Department of Transportation gets money from the federal government, state fees, bonds, and the gas tax. The two- year capital improvement fund is $650 million, said Deputy Commissioner Gregory Nadeau.

Damon, who mentioned the bridge collapse in Minnesota as an example of deteriorating infrastructure, described roads and bridges as the “lifeline of commerce” and said citizens deserve to drive on solid roads and spans.

The state also needs to invest in railroads and other modes of transportation, he said.

“The investments we make in new bridges and roads will pay dividends in the future,” he said.

Damon and other members of the Transportation Committee met jointly with the Appropriations Committee to talk about ways to bring in more money. The options include:

Tolls on bridges and highways.

Changing the gas tax to a sales tax so it brings in more money.

Borrowing money for repairs.

Raising license and registration fees to bring in more money.

They made no decisions, but voted to create a subcommittee to put together a list of recommendations for consideration by the full Legislature in January.

Damon and other members of the Transportation Committee tried to state their case for more money, with one member warning that borrowing to pay for repairs is not a path he’s willing to take.

Lawmakers tried to pass a major transportation bill earlier this year, but the funding sources – raising fees and taking a portion of the car and truck sales tax – proved controversial. The bill was held over for consideration next year.

Rep. Doug Thomas, R-Ripley, criticized the bill, saying “it will carry a load of debt for our kids and grandkids.”

Appropriations Committee Chairman Rep. Jeremy Fischer, D-Presque Isle, said his committee, which is trying to cut $10 million from the budget, is trying to balance competing pressures.

“Every committee that comes before us says their issues are more important,” he said.

Fischer suggested that the Transportation Committee consider changing the state gas tax – it’s now 27.6 cents a gallon – to a sales tax to bring in more revenue.

As it is now, the state’s portion of the tax is tied to the number of gallons purchased, which means when gas prices go up, people buy fewer gallons and state revenues go down, Damon said.

If the tax became a sales tax, revenues would go up along with the price.

Sen. Karl Turner, R-Cumberland, said the state needs to figure out a better way to support transportation needs.

“The era of cheap oil on which our system is built is not going to serve us well in the future,” he said.

(c) 2007 Portland Press Herald. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.