In Connecticut, an independent gubernatorial candidate says he’ll push for the immediate installation of electronic highway tolls, if he’s elected. Oz Greibel was speaking on WFSB-TV’s "Face the State."
Griebel, a former head of the business group MetroHartford Alliance and a former Republican, says highway tolls have to be part of Connecticut’s long-term highway investment.
“Pick whatever state you go through, tolls – electronic tolls – are part of our transportation system. What I’ve said is, in order to demonstrate to all of us in Connecticut that the world won’t come to an end when they put them in place, is that we take the HOV lanes on 91 and 84 in Hartford, put a reader over those lanes, and let’s try it lets see what happens.”
Griebel dismisses his Democratic rival Ned Lamont’s proposal to have tolls on the state’s borders and only for trucks.
“This notion of border tolls and trucks only – to me – is a lot of legal hoo-ha. The truckers are already challenging the Rhode Island approach to trucks only, and I think that was to lay the groundwork for ultimately everybody paying.”
Griebel says neighboring states like Massachusetts have only electronic tolls on their highways.
”What I’ve said is in order to demonstrate to all of us in Connecticut that the world won’t come to an end when they put them in place is that we take the HOV lanes on 91 and 84 in Hartford, put a reader over those lanes, and let’s try it. Let’s see what happens.”
Griebel’s Republican rival, Bob Stefanowski, is opposed to the reintroduction of highway tolls. Stefanowski says it’s an unnecessary tax on the state’s commuters. Tolls were removed from Connecticut’s highways in 1983 after six people were killed and four injured in a fiery accident at a highway toll station in Stratford.
