Governor Moore asked the US Department of Transportation for federal grant dollars to build Hogan-era toll lanes. USDOT wisely chose to put its dollars elsewhere this year.
That leaves the Moore administration with three options:
Option 1 (the second worst): Wait and reapply for next year’s grants. Here’s what will happen during the wait: MDOT will continue wasting scarce taxpayer dollars (over $76 million in 2024-25 alone) on toll lane planning (p. 300); the lawsuit challenging the project will likely be decided; opposition to the toll lanes will grow.
Option 2 (the worst): Switch to the for-profit P3 model Hogan championed. Pressure for this will surely come from Virginia, whose I-495 NEXT toll lanes have no MD construction to connect to. Fault VDOT for demolishing their highway tree canopy, tearing down sound walls, and pouring concrete before MD's plans were set. To see what makes this option the worst, read “Wiedefeld Explains”, below.
Option 3 (the clear best): Treat the USDOT grant decision as a fortuitous second chance to cancel Hogan’s plan. Then take a fresh look at the public’s real transportation needs and the smart, equitable alternatives already on the table.
Credit: Maryland Matters, 1/27/24
Action Item: Register for Feb. 6 Zoom Town Hall
To hear the latest toll lane developments, sign up for the virtual Town Hall sponsored by Citizens Against Beltway Expansion (CABE) and DontWiden270.org. The Town Hall is on Tuesday, February 6, at 7:30 p.m. Register now to join us!
A highlight of the meeting will be a discussion with State Delegate Marc Korman (D16). Maryland Matters recently said about Del. Korman: “The new chair of the House Environment and Transportation Committee has been ‘Mr. Transportation’ throughout his legislative career and will be at the center of the fight to push back on the Moore administration’s proposed spending cuts…” You won’t want to miss this. Zoom Town Hall, Feb. 6 at 7:30.
Secretary Wiedefeld explains what’s wrong with a P3
MDOT Secretary Wiedefeld had a most informative conversation with State Senator Cheryl Kagan (D17) on the Senator’s podcast, “Kibbitzing with Kagan”. Responding to her questions about the toll lane plan, the Secretary gave a clear and convincing argument against public-private partnership financing for the toll lane project (minutes 22:12 to 23:27).
Here (very slightly edited for clarity and conciseness) is what he said about the P3 venture:
“Financially that was probably going to dig us a bigger and bigger hole because we had very limited control over that. There is a time and a place for public private partnerships. I just think the more complicated some of these projects are, it's a little bit more difficult. Because you give up a lot of the ability to control the future.”
“And you're doing it at a cost. The reality is the taxpayers are still going to pay for it in some fashion… [The private partners] basically need to deliver the same project. They need to make margin…Now they have dollars to do that. There are ways they can do that. But at the end of the day the customer's going to pay.”
“They're not giving the state money. So I think on these very complex projects, you really have to think through that. And that's really what we did. And the contractor did as well…financially, the numbers were not working any longer without even a larger investment by the state.”
Thank you for this, Senator Kagan and Secretary Wiedefeld.