State Rep. Arnold Simpson, D-Covington, is leading an effort to prevent tolls from being placed on proposed new bridges crossing the Ohio River in Louisville and northern Kentucky. He thinks the federal government should shoulder more of the cost of building the bridges — each costing at least $3 billion — instead of expecting state and local government to foot most of the bill.
Well, no one likes tolls. However, if Congress is unwilling to approve money to build the bridges, then what are the alternatives available to Kentucky, Ohio and Indiana, the three states directly benefiting from the bridges? Kentucky certainly does not have the financial means to allocate $6 billion to $10 billion to construct the bridges.
That leaves the choice between toll bridges or no bridges at all. Safety alone makes failing to replace the two aging bridges an unacceptable alternative. It’s not a matter of if, but how to replace the bridges in two of the largest metropolitan centers in the Kentucky.
Instead of tolls, Simpson calls fees to cross the bridges “urban bridge taxes,” but other legislators have another name for tolls: “User fees.” Why shouldn’t those using the bridges be primarily responsible for paying for them? Why should residents of California, Oregon and other distant states pay for bridges across the Ohio River?
If Simpson succeeds in slowing construction of the two bridges by leading a prolonged debate over tolls, he will be adding to the cost of replacing the bridges with no guarantee of convincing Congress to pay for them. If he succeeds in killing the replacement of the bridges, he will be endangering the thousands who cross them daily.
Bridge tolls — as well as toll roads — are nothing new. They date back to the early 19th Century. Many of us can remember when there were tolls on the bridge connecting Russell and Ironton and on the bridge linking U.S. 52 with Interstate 64 in Huntington. We didn’t like them, but we paid them for the convenience of crossing the Ohio River. We’d do the same when visiting in Cincinnati and Louisville.
Editorials
'User fees' — 07/11/08
Tolls may be the only way to pay for costly bridges
- Editorials
-
-
Focus on music
There will be no new trophies for winning marching band competitions for the Boyd County High School band. Nor will band members be spending as many summer days in the hot sun in band camp and autumn Saturdays taking long bus drives to compete in band festivals in distant communities.
-
Memorial Day
Unlike our other wars, the American people were never asked to sacrifice for the war in Iraq and the one still ongoing in Afghanistan. They have been wars fought by an all-voluntary military and by the “weekend soldiers” in the National Guard and in the Army, Navy and Air Force Reserve
-
Still more cuts
If you believe the cuts mandated by the two-year state budget that will take effect July 1 will have little impact on services, consider this.
-
Earmarks again?
Immediately, following the midterm elections of 2010 which saw Republicans regain control of the House of Representatives and capture seats in the U.S. Senate, Republican leaders in Congress announced they had heard the voice of the voters and vowed to cease using “earmarks,” the name given to appropriations slipped into bills by influential legislators without a vote.
-
Best in the nation
It may surprise many readers that Newsweek’s “best high school in America” is located right here in Kentucky and is open to selected students throughout the state, but then the Carol Martin Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science at Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green is hardly your typical high school. In fact, it would be impossible for even the best public high schools to emulate the amazing success of students at the Gatton Academy.
-
After the vote
We offer today a few reflections on the messages voters sent in Tuesday’s primary election in Kentucky.
-
A mild winter
As we approach the Memorial Day weekend, long hailed as the unofficial start of the summer vacation season, we pause to reflect upon the winter that wasn’t.
-
Devices banned
Emergency breathing devices that tests have proven unreliable are being phased out under a directive issued by the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration. However, MSHA has given mine operators more than 18 months to remove all the air packs from underground mines.
-
A free weekend
In an effort to promote increased recreational use of the two lakes in the Daniel Boone National Forest, the U.S. Forest Service will offer free fishing and boating during the first weekend in June.
-
Ho-hum election
Psst! Want to know a secret? There’s a primary election Tuesday. And it’s right here in Kentucky! However, there has been so little interest in this election, that Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, the state’s top election official, is predicting that only betwixen 10 and 12 percent of the state’s eligible voters will take the time to go to the polls tomorrow.
- More Editorials Headlines
-
Focus on music
No Limits for Disabled Hunters at Mich. Base
Victim Identified in Fla. Face-chewing Attack
Radioactive Bluefin Tuna Crossed the Pacific
90 Guns Seized, Dozens Arrested in Oakland
Raw Video: Hail Storm Batters Oklahoma City
6-Year-Old Going to National Spelling Bee
California's Foie Gras Ban About to Begin
Video Essay: Funky Winkerbean Comic Turns 40
Hurricane Andrew Remembered, 20 Years Later
Judge's Ruling Halts Tenn. Mosque Construction
Romney in Las Vegas on Texas Primary Day
Sister Says She Reported Brother in Patz Killing
Even Fla. Police Shocked by Face-Mauling Attack
Angry Birds Spreading Their Wings
