5 years ago
ATLANTA (AP) -- Some University of Georgia students say they would find other routes to and from school if officials approve tolls for Ga. 316.
The state is considering charging drivers as much as $4.70 each way in tolls to travel the highway without having to stop at red lights.
The state Transportation Board will decide Jan. 5 on whether to convert the congested 39-mile, four-lane highway into a limited-access freeway with HOV lanes, officials said Thursday. The proposed toll would be 12 cents a mile.
The $800 million project is being pitched by a consortium of highway builders called the Parkway Group. The Parkway Group would fund construction by borrowing from investors. The state still would own the road, but investors would be repaid with toll revenue.
Officials have asked the public give their opinions on the proposal during the next two weeks.
But some commuters have said they will not pay a dime to use a road they have driven on for free for years.
State Rep. Bob Smith, R-Watkinsville, has opposed the tolls, going so far as to poll his constituents on the eastern end of Ga. 316 in Oconee, Madison and Clarke counties. Most said the full fare was "unreasonable," he reported.
Some truck drivers have also said they oppose mandatory tolls. And some students at the University of Georgia said the nearly $10 round-trip would force them to seek other routes.
Transportation Commissioner Harold Linnenkohl acknowledged that tolls on Ga. 316 would be controversial.
"I've had legislators tell me if we put a toll on 316 they will get voted out of office," Linnenkohl said. "But we've got to look at what's best for the state."
The limited-access highway would have two toll lanes and one HOV lane in each direction. The builders would not say whether high occupancy vehicle travelers will ride for free on the highway. The entire stretch would be open by 2010, years ahead of existing state plans to improve the road.
Ga. 316 has been a frustrating and dangerous ride for commuters for years. Growth has turned the road into a parking lot at rush hour as drivers get on and off Interstate 85.
Traffic on the portion of the road in Gwinnett County rose from 48,000 to 86,000 cars a day during the 1990s, according to a study sponsored by the state. The numbers are projected to double by 2025. Traffic on the rest of Ga. 316 would double or triple by then.
Associated Press