Charging those who use roads for maintenance way to go

COURTESY DOT
DRIVE THROUGH: Michael Lewis, director of the state DOT, says that the concept of stopping at a tollbooth “is a dinosaur.”
COURTESY DOT DRIVE THROUGH: Michael Lewis, director of the state DOT, says that the concept of stopping at a tollbooth “is a dinosaur.”

Before Michael Lewis was hired to run Rhode Island’s transportation system, he spent two decades working on Boston’s impressive and notorious Big Dig project. Keeping the Ocean State’s highways open and buses running isn’t as glamorous as the central-artery tunnel, but in its own way is just as challenging. With costs rising to maintain public transportation, a number of bridge projects due and gas-tax revenue flat, Lewis has embarked on the unpleasant job of seeking toll increases. If that weren’t enough, the state’s long-term vision and investment in extending commuter-rail service is again coming up against unpleasant fiscal realities.

PBN: The Interstate 95 Providence Viaduct Bridge has been in bad shape for some time. Who is going to pay to fix it and when should drivers expect construction to begin?
LEWIS: Over the last decade DOT has invested in major infrastructure improvements, including the I-Way in downtown Providence. … The next in line is the Providence Viaduct. Because of its structural condition, it needs to be replaced. That was recognized before I came here. We have developed the design and are ready to go out to bid later this year for the first stage.
Because of limited funds, we rely on federal funds and this project will take up most of what future federal funds we have. We need to do the project but because it is so large it limits what we can do throughout the state.
It is the primary reason we proposed tolling on I-95; that would be the primary source of revenue and ensure we never have another Pawtucket River bridge and viaduct problem again. Absent that, we have to find other ways to pay for the viaduct.

PBN: When you look out 20 years from now, how will Rhode Island be paying for its transportation infrastructure? LEWIS: Transportation across the country will be funded differently in 20 years. We are already changing in Rhode Island. We have for years relied on borrowing to match federal funds. That has put us behind the eight ball, because of the debt service taking up so much of the money. The governor and legislature have already taken steps to change that. We will become a pay-as-you-go state.
At both the state and federal level, many people feel receipts from the gas tax, which is the largest source of state and federal funding, is not a long-term solution. … There is a sense that a true user fee might be where we are going. Certainly with the advance in electronic-information systems, the technology is there for capturing data in a very efficient way. I think we need to catch up socially, that that is an acceptable way for a user fee.
The concept of stopping at a tollbooth and putting a quarter in is a dinosaur. In New Hampshire they are already open-road tolling. That is the middle generation. Next is all electronic and beyond that is how far you are driving and on what facility during what time of day; and all of that will be inside the vehicle.

PBN: When Rhode Island has invested so much in expanding commuter-rail service, how frustrating is it to see the Mass. Bay Transportation Authority proposing fare hikes and service cuts?
LEWIS: It is frustrating but it is also reality. Just as we are struggling in Rhode Island, it is not just a Rhode Island issue, it is a national issue. Massachusetts and other states are facing similar problems, but on a larger scale. I tend to be glass half-full [person]. It makes us focus on how we are investing in transportation. We can’t put our heads in the sand. RIPTA is facing the same thing. We take for granted that these systems are there, but they come with a cost. We have an agreement with the MBTA. We will have service to Wickford Junction in the spring. It will be a great for the city and the job market in Rhode Island.

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PBN: What do you tell folks on Aquidneck Island who say it is not fair that they are the only part of the state whose bridges are maintained using tolls.
LEWIS: When we have tolling, it is an opportunity to charge people who don’t live in Rhode Island but pass through. That is why we are not giving up on tolling. On the Connecticut border, 80 percent of commercial vehicles are from out of state. They do not have to buy gas and invest in our infrastructure. … We fully recognize that putting a toll where one doesn’t exist, you are impacting people. By putting the local area under user discounts, it makes it not pain free, but better for local users.

PBN: North Carolina was recently awarded the final federal slot to charge tolls on the interstate system, a slot Rhode Island had pushed hard for. Is there any chance we will still see tolls at the Connecticut border anytime soon?
LEWIS: When the federal government announced the final slot to North Carolina, the administrator wrote me a letter to say, continue the study and evaluate I-95. Congress is debating a reauthorization and we hope there will be greater flexibility for tolling where states feel it is a local interest. Three slots were approved, but if those states are unable to implement or there is a change of heart, those would be available. We want to be in line if that happens. Of course, if there is another source of revenue available to us, I will look at it. Perhaps the only thing worse than tolling is not tolling, if it means we don’t maintain our infrastructure. •

INTERVIEW
Michael Lewis
POSITION: Director of the R.I. Department of Transportation
BACKGROUND: Born in Canada and educated at the University of Vermont, Michael Lewis started his public-works career on Boston’s Big Dig tunnel project in 1992 and rose to the position of project director in 2007. In 2008, he was hired by then-Gov. Donald L. Carcieri to lead the R.I. Department of Transportation.
EDUCATION: Bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Vermont in 1983
FIRST JOB: Looked after a New York estate belonging to an executive for the Caterpillar machinery company
RESIDENCE: Scituate, Mass.
AGE: 50

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1 COMMENT

  1. Well, let’s see “… a true user fee might be where we are going. … with the advance in electronic-information systems, the technology is there for capturing data in a very efficient way. …” No, Mr. Lewis, Big Brother doesn’t get to watch me. We are a free nation, and this has got to be the biggest proposed abuse of technology I’ve heard of recently. If the state wants to capture the mileage reading off my vehicle when it’s purchased, sold and/or inspected, that’s fine. But you don’t get to put an electronic tail on me.