New DOT proposal would charge toll on regular lane

DOT would be allowed to charge a toll on a currently free lane to help close the funding gap on a toll project, only on a case-by-case basis, if justified by a “business case,” said DOT’s assistant treasurer, Earl Mahfuz.

He said it wouldn’t allow for charging a toll on all the lanes on a free road that already exists, like the ill-fated effort to rebuild and charge toll on all lanes of Ga. 316. That proposal died in a firestorm of controversy and prompted the ban in the first place.

The consultant who presented the recommendation to the board, Tim Heilmeier of HNTB, said that toll projects like those being planned for Georgia — where toll lanes run alongside regular lanes — almost never pay for themselves but require some state funding. Charging tolls on an additional regular lane that’s already built could help close the funding gap, he said.

On such projects, there are no toll booths, but rather electronic sensors that don’t require drivers to slow down. The toll price rises and falls with congestion in the main lanes. The idea is not to make money for the state — it’s to make the toll price high enough to keep out people who can’t afford it, and so guarantee a precious thing: one place with free-flowing traffic, even at rush hour.

In the board meeting Kuhlke and some other members mentioned Ga. 400 as a possibility for charging tolls for regular lanes.

The presentation mentioned other possibilities, including northern I-85. The state is already planning a toll system for I-85’s HOV lanes in Gwinnett County.

Although Ga. 400 has no HOV lanes, it’s unclear if the proposed policy change would allow one or two toll lanes each way. One of Ga. 400’s regular lanes was built after the board made its 2005 policy, so the ban may not apply to it.

Board member Brandon Beach, who represents part of Ga. 400, said, “As long as over 50 percent of the lanes are free to the public, I’m willing to look at that.”