TALKING FREIGHT SEMINAR:

Truck Separated Lanes/Truck Tolling

MARCH 16, 2005DARRIN ROTH

DIRECTOR OF HIGHWAY OPERATIONSAMERICAN TRUCKING ASSOCIATIONS

TRUCK LANES – POSITIVES• Safety

– Eliminates operational differences that create conflicts– Safer working environment for professional truck drivers: three-

quarters of car-truck crashes begin with the actions of the car driver

• Opportunity for productivity improvements– Less congestion through increased capacity and better traffic flow

(more homogenous mix of vehicles)– Better reliability– Changes in size and weight

• Highway design can be tailored to fit vehicles– Thicker pavements, stronger bridges, better geometrics for truck

lanes– Less expensive pavements, bridges, geometric features for

passenger vehicle lanes

TRUCK LANES – NEGATIVES• Potential for reduced access if mandatory

– shifts traffic to surface streets

• Unique design features could produce safety problems– Potential merge issues if trucks mix with

traffic in general purpose lanes to enter/exit

– If a single lane, could result in reduced spacing, accident clearance, emergency response, construction zone problems

TOLL FINANCING• Trucking industry prefers highway funding

through traditional methods, i.e. federal and state fuel taxes, registration fees – These fees can be passed on, tolls cannot, causing

truckers to avoid toll roads:• More accidents – non-Interstates’ accident rate at least 4

times higher• Local congestion, pollution, noise problems• Higher infrastructure costs on alternate routes• Local deliveries bear the greatest burden• Traffic, revenue projections routinely underestimate evasion

TOLL FINANCING

• If tolls are used: – Use of the toll road must be voluntary – Tolls on new lanes only…no tolls on existing

Interstate lanes– All revenues go to the project

• Highway user groups, business community united in their opposition to tolls on existing Interstates

• General public will not accept tolls on existing Interstates

Reason Foundation Study

• Meets all of ATA’s criteria, but concerned about single lane design

• Trucking industry unsure about support because voluntary lanes could become mandatory if revenues too low – federal law allowing tolls on existing lanes is a

barrier to acceptance

• Most promising truck lanes fill gaps in existing longer combination vehicle network

I-81 Virginia• Mandatory tolled truck-only lanes in

center median – 325 miles• No plans for LCVs• $13 billion total cost• VDOT acknowledges truck-only tolls

won’t work under scenario being considered

I-81 Traffic Diversion

• Toll rate at completion in 2019: 37 cents/mile = 25 cents/mile, 2004 inflation adjusted

• Historically trucks make 2-4 cents per mile in profit

• Causes truck to divert unless alternate routes are more costly

I-81 Traffic Diversion

I-81 Traffic Diversion

Closing Thoughts

• The current system of financing and building highways is not working as well as needed

• Tolled truck lanes can be a limited solution under certain circumstances…

…BUT…planners and policy makers must have a much better understanding of how the trucking industry works to avoid unintended consequences, especially how services are priced and routing decisions are made