If you fill upon January 1, expect to pay an additional 8 cents a gallon. That's right, the state that already has the highest gas tax in the nation is kicking things up to a mindboggling 58.3 cents a gallon. Add the federal tax of 18.4 cents a gallon and Pennsylvanians - already saddled with the highest gas tax in the country - will fork over 76.7 cents a gallon in gas taxes.
Then there's the 6 percent increase in tolls on the PA Turnpike (that 6 percent increase could be an annual event every year for the next 27 years!). And, just where is the increase going? To upgrade the quality of the Turnpike? A little, possibly, but mostly to divert Turnpike tolls to other state budget needs.
And just what is the presumed justification our spineless state legislators use for these increases? Moral impotence. Instead of requiring townships without police forces to pay for state police protection, all of us take it in the shorts so that those townships get "free" police protection. A lovely way to buy votes - target specific beneficiaries while spreading the pain across the masses.
And, the state of our roads and bridges? What a joke. I see next to no construction activity on Rt 22 and zero construction activity on the Northeast Extension. For most of last week, there was zero construction activity on the Fahy bridge which is now two months behind schedule. I guess week long holiday vacations for construction workers take precedence over bringing a job in on time. Maybe the Fahy contractor is in a contest to exceed the construction time for Rt 412. The way things are going, he might be successful.
Oh, and the South Side parking garage? You might want to check on how little progress has been made there.
PennDOT has the patent on simultaneously maximizing motorist inconvenience and maximizing the time period to complete a job. Municipal contractors just follow suit.
Cheers to a PA economy which will continue to falter.
Today's one-liner: "The shortest way to the distinguishing excellence of any writer is through his hostile critics." Richard LeGallienne
Local Government TV
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Friday, December 30, 2016
25 comments:
You own views are appreciated, especially if they differ from mine. But remember, commenting is a privilege, not a right. I will delete personal attacks or off-topic remarks at my discretion. Comments that play into the tribalism that has consumed this nation will be declined. So will comments alleging voter fraud unless backed up by concrete evidence. If you attack someone personally, I expect you to identify yourself. I will delete criticisms of my comment policy, vulgarities, cut-and-paste jobs from other sources and any suggestion of violence towards anyone. I will also delete sweeping generalizations about mainstream parties or ideologies, i.e. identity politics. My decisions on these matters are made on a case by case basis, and may be affected by my mood that day, my access to the blog at the time the comment was made or other information that isn’t readily apparent.
Did you ever think that Pa, has more Bridges, Highways, equipment for plowing, etc. than almost every other state. Also, our winters take their tolls in Pa, creating the pot hole capitol of the world. I don't care if I pay more gasoline taxes as long as they fix the roads.
ReplyDelete2:33 - you missed the entire point. There is little road work as most of the money is being diverted to other accounts.
ReplyDeleteIn other news - the Fahy contractors need a good kick in the butt from the donchez administration, but don't hold your breath
"... and zero construction activity on the Northeast Extension."
ReplyDeleteWhat? This is a ridiculous statement from somebody who clearly hasn't driven between LV and Mid-County in the last three years. There's been 17 miles of cattle chute forever. And the widening is expected to continue for years. There are three projects ongoing to our north, as well. The Turnpike is also bled dry by annual payments to PennDOT and SEPTA, a Rendell gift to his home town.
All readers: Please consider using US 22 from Harrisburg to Pittsburgh as an alternative route to save nearly $50 in tolls round trip. The drive adds about 50 minutes each way, but is a beautiful ride and there are about a dozen Sheetz stores along the
ReplyDeleteway so you can avoid the overcrowded restrooms and $3 cups of coffee on the PA Turnpike. Ive saved
over a $1,000 in tolls using US 22 over the past 5 years.
Thank you Mario Scavello (aka RINO) -- we will remember you voted to raise the gas tax.
ReplyDeleteIt's not only the overcrowded restrooms on the Turnpike but they are disgustingly maintained. Shame on our state.
ReplyDeleteThere has been a very small bridge reconstruction on Georgetown Rd. in Lower Nazareth Township for well over 1 year. We are talking about replacing a single lane bridge with a double lane bridge going over the Monocacy creek. Pathetic.
ReplyDeleteinept politicians on both side of the aisle only to be voted in again and again... and, led by inept engineers performing the work!
ReplyDeleteIn Lower Nazareth Township they are looking for artifacts, i.e. arrowheads, dead indians, etc., etc. They stop working every time they hear a train whistle. You're right, that project is taking way too long as is the bridge project right up the road on Steuben Road. They screwed up that part of the township for most part of a year. What a disgrace. Oh by the way, they did find some artifacts (old bones).....we think it is where the twsp. buried their skeletons. No indians involved.
ReplyDeleteComparisons to gas taxes in other states are misleading b/c states use a variety of sources to pay for roads & bridges. In PA, it is a user fee system where we pay driver license/vehicle registration fees & gas taxes that go into a dedicated fund for highways and bridges (and also state police enforcement). Many other states use bonds, general funds, sales taxes on motor vehicles, etc. to supplement their gas tax.
ReplyDeleteStop whining.
ReplyDeleteAll us smart people know that Americans pay way too little for gasoline.
In order to save the World, you rubes will need to accept at least $10/gallon.
Only then will the weather return to normal.
From today's Morning Call: And in Pennsylvania, the state says, your money is going to good use.
ReplyDelete(PennDOT's Rich) Kirkpatrick said Pennsylvania uses a user-fee system, so drivers pay some fees and fuel taxes that go into a dedicated fund that supports highways and bridges in addition to state police enforcement on the system. He pointed out that state police costs have increased significantly over the last decade, from $368 million in 2004-05 to $802 million this fiscal year.
In addition, Kirkpatrick said with the added resources from Act 89, which will provide $2.4 billion by 2018, PennDOT is making "significant progress" against the backlog of needed highway and bridge improvements.
For example, he said, PennDOT has cut the number of structurally deficient bridges from a peak of 6,034 in 2008 to 3,662.
Pennsylvania has the nation's fifth-largest state-maintained highway system and the third-largest state-maintained bridge system, roughly the same size of the state-maintained systems of New York, New Jersey and the New England states combined, according to Kirkpatrick.
"Pennsylvania simply must shoulder the responsibility for keeping this system in as good a shape as possible," he said.
For further information on where the money is being invested, visit www.projects.penndot.gov.
So -- when the bridge and road improvements are made, can we expect a lowering of the PA gas tax???
ReplyDeleteDon't hold your breath.
Obama's America.
ReplyDeleteWhat is the status of Route 22 widening? The MacArthur Road interchange was built quickly for the arena and was valued-engineered to obsoleteness to avoid center piers. It was designed assuming there would be no widening. FHA design waivers had to be secured once talk of widening resurfaced. If 22 is widened, tbe added accelleration lanes will become driving lanes and the interchange will be converted to a tight diamond. This means that two of the lanes on the MacArthur Road deck will become underfit turning lanes with insufficient stacking distance. This will result in shorter traffic signals, cross traffic, and many more points of conflict becusenof the need for cross traffic. Maybe the solution is a diverging diamond interchange with a wider deck. One thing is certain, shelve the value engineering design and ensure it is built without creating safety hazards on Route 22 and more congestion on MacArthur Road.
ReplyDeleteStop the excessive paper work , engineering grab , legal crap at the state and federal levels and more $$ would be available for highway and bridge building! More money goes into the paper end of these projects today than that of actual construction.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking from experience
to the person complaining about he bridge on Georgetown Rd, Please learn your facts before you spew your trash on here. If you would bother to investigate, several underground voids were found. This has lead to the entire area in and around the bridge footers to be grouted underground. Also, the area around the RR tracks was found to have contaminated soil which has to be tested , and then trucked to a special waste facility. Thirdly, protection of the RR must be maintained at all times with Norfolk Southern slowing the project down on their end and with good reason. But I guess you would rather have those contaminates run into the Monocacy Creek, the trains that use the rail to derail into the construction site and the bridge to fall into a sinkhole once complete. blah blah blah ...
ReplyDeleteForgot to mention, the Georgetown rd. bridge closed in June of 2016. So don't even cry about Georgetown Rd being closed for more than a year now, its been 6 months !
ReplyDeleteI stand by my original statement.....in Lower Nazareth townshit they found Indian artifacts that date back to Chief Gremlin and a small band of Capatchees that used to roam the are with a Band of Indians known as the Fargaawee. That's where the ole saying goes "where the fugarwee" Where the fug ar wee?
ReplyDelete5:20 - you schmuck --- if they ran into problems, then throw more resources at it to get the job done. After all PA has the highest gas tax in the nation. Use some of the $$$'s.
ReplyDelete6 months - 1 year - whatever -- it's taken way too long.
Some retailers raised their gas yesterday to $2.55. Another went from $2.43 to $2.55 at 8am this am. It seems like these retailers are gaming the public and using the gas tax that goes into effect tomorrow as a means to raise revenue. Can they legally rig a price jump of $.12? If so, revenue collected should go to the municiplaities that host the retailer.
ReplyDeleteTime for LMT to carry their own water and pay for their own police protection. Is it true that municipalities that do not have their own police protection still get to keep half the fine revenue?
To you Schmuck 5;51,
ReplyDeleteThere is only so much space to work in at the construction site. It takes specialized equipment to due some of this work and takes time to get it here and set up. The mindless idiots are on here again with out any facts as usual!
Come on. What kind of specialized equipment would it take to do this type of work? According to you, it's been 6 months under construction. They are changing from a single lane bridge to a two lane bridge. Let's see how much longer it will take to complete. Your next excuse for the delay will be that we are in the winter months. You sound like some politician, probably one who voted to raise the gas tax in order to get faster and better road repairs. All this time the people of Lower Nazareth continue to be inconvenienced.
ReplyDeleteGood roads only get you more traffic. We'd all be better off with a moratorium on all street repairs except for the road that leads out of town.
ReplyDeleteA township without a police force?
ReplyDeleteHow can it be a true legal fiction without enforcement of the illusion?