by Ron McLinden
MoDOT is about to spend far more money than necessary to rebuild I-70. It all depends on how they use tolls to pay for it. When they studied the 200 miles of I-70 between Independence and Lake St. Louis, MoDOT’s consultants estimated future traffic would require six lanes all the way across the state. They advised widening the existing highway at a cost of $2.8 billion.
MoDOT doesn’t have that kind of money, so they’re looking into making I-70 a toll road. That’s not popular, but a lot of people are coming to the conclusion that tolls will be necessary. Tolls would require amending the state constitution, and Senator Matt Bartle of Lee’s Summit has introduced SB 31 and SJR 11 to put that question to the voters.
At a recent legislative hearing a MoDOT consultant testified that a moderate toll on I-70—five cents per mile or so—would divert 25 percent of traffic to other roads. Some would go to local roads and some to other routes like US 36 and US 50.
But if tolls reduce traffic, then the projections that justify a sixlane “free” I-70 are invalid for a tolled I-70— and could even jeopardize the ability of tolls to pay off construction bonds.
How tolls are administered is also important. “Value pricing”—tolls that go up or down depending on travel demand—is gaining support around the country. Value pricing influences some motorists to choose other routes or modes or times for travel. As a result, traffic is evened out and congestion is reduced.
What an elegant concept—raise money to rebuild I-70, ease congestion, and reduce the need to add lanes, all by using the “market mechanism” of prices to allocate limited “travel space” on a highway!
Then there’s the question of who pays tolls. Past studies have envisioned collecting tolls from long-distance travelers while local folks use I-70 for short hops without paying. But local trips increase congestion and reduce safety by adding merges and lane-changes. What’s more, drivers actually pay less per mile in user fees to drive on I-70 than on other state routes. Continued free access to a very costly highway for short trips makes no sense at all.
MoDOT estimates it’ll cost over $650 million to rebuild just the 18-mile segment of I-70 through Columbia. They envision eight lanes on much of this segment, plus frontage roads. With value pricing tolls and a local access fee, this segment could be rebuilt at a savings of $100s of millions, and MoDOT could avoid displacing dozens of households and businesses.
And the stakes are high for Columbia itself. With I-70 expanded as envisioned, Columbia will continue to sprawl to the east and west. As that happens, prospects for a vibrant, livable center city Columbia will diminish, and Columbia’s cherished quality of life will deteriorate.
MoDOT needs to “give us a brake” in this I-70 “work zone.” An over-designed I-70 across Missouri will waste $100s of millions and further undermine MoDOT’s credibility in the process.
MoDOT should decide to rebuild I-70 as a permanent toll road, and to use value pricing tolls and local access fees to reduce the need for expansion.