Connecticut Should Reinstate Tolls To Lower Gas Prices

By: Editorial Board

Posted: 6/9/08

In 1983, a truck slammed into the Stratford toll plaza along Interstate 95, killing seven and forever altering the lives of Connecticut motorists. After that accident, lobbyists pressured the state into removing all Connecticut tolls by 1988, despite the fact that they had generated an average of $65 million annually. In order to cover the loss of revenue left by the absence of the tolls, Connecticut began to increase its gas tax.

This trend continued, such that, two decades after Connecticut removed its tolls, we now have the second-highest gas tax in the nation ($0.625 per gallon, just shy of California's $0.639 per gallon).

In response, the state legislature is now debating a variety of bills, sponsoring anything from a summer gas tax holiday to a $0.07 per-gallon increase on the gas tax. Despite its good intentions, many of these "solutions" are likely to yield little real benefit to motorists.

For example, the gas tax holiday proposal suggests that Connecticut ought to eliminate the state gas tax for some or all of the summer months. While this sounds like a good idea, many state legislators are concerned that the gas station owners would not lower prices, even if the gas tax were eliminated. Similar instances have occurred throughout the country, where, when states lowered their gas taxes, gas stations didn't pass the intended savings onto consumers, but merely pocketed the difference.

Furthermore, a summer gas tax holiday would also leave the state without a significant source of revenue, a problem that would likely be passed on to taxpayers in the form of an increased income tax. Of course, not doing anything is not an appealing option either. With prices at the pump topping $4.25 per gallon and likely to rise, Connecticut residents are looking for relief as they struggle to pay for their daily commutes.

This relief may very well come from the very tolls that Connecticut was once so eager to eliminate. If tolls were brought back on Interstate 95, particularly in the southwestern-most portions of the state, tolls would primarily target out-of-state residents, while still generating a great deal of revenue. This would eliminate the need for the gas tax, giving some much-needed relief to all Connecticut residents.

In addition, many of the arguments given against tolls at the time of their elimination are now no longer relevant. For example, tolls no longer cause excessive traffic congestion, as the development of E-ZPass has created an efficient way to implement a toll. With gas prices already high because of rising crude oil costs, tolls are the only way to put Connecticut residents back on the road toward affordable driving.