It’s January 1st, and for the twelfth straight year, drivers on the Pennsylvania Turnpike are set to see a rate increase. A six percent rate hike will take effect on Sunday.
A cross-state passenger-vehicle trip from the Ohio border to the Delaware River crossing will increase by $3.10, to $53.50 for cash customers. Those using EZ Pass will see an increase of $2.20, to $38.40.
It’s part of a planned forty straight years of increases, all the way to 2048. The Turnpike Commission blames a 2007 state law requiring it to make annual payments to PennDOT for construction projects that are not a part of the turnpike system. In addition, the commission says its own operating costs, servicing more than $11 billion in debt, and construction and maintenance on the 360 mile highway add to its obligations.
Auditor General Eugene DePasquale said recently he is afraid people will abandon the turnpike and use other roads to travel cross-state. A truckers group, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, and the National Motorists Association have both sued the Turnpike Commission over the rising rates, asking for the return of $6 billion.
