The first public hearing on privatizing the 241-mile Ohio Turnpike displayed the public's disapproval of the plan, reports the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
The Ohio Turnpike stretches 241 miles across Ohio from Indiana to Pennsylvania.
The Ohio Turnpike stretches 241 miles across Ohio from Indiana to Pennsylvania.


Of 77 people that attended the hearing Tuesday, 75 raised their hands to signal they did not approve of Ohio Gov. John Kasich's plan to lease the turnpike. The attendees, the Plain Dealer reports, preferred to stick with the status quo, agreeing with a recent Akron Metropolitan Area Transportation study that concluded the turnpike is "an efficiently run, revenue-producing asset."

Attendees cited the Indiana Turnpike as an example of why they do not want to privatize the Ohio Turnpike, which stretches across Ohio from Indiana to Pennsylvania.

Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald expressed his concerns about this at the meeting, reports the Plain Dealer. "The company in control of the Indiana Turnpike is having all kinds of financial problems," FitzGerald said. "We don't want to have happening in Ohio what happened in Indiana."

"The Indiana Turnpike is a nightmare," said Lenore Novak of Lorain, another hearing attendee. "Their roads are deplorable, and you can't get through their toll booths."

The next hearing will take place July 25 in Lucas County. A third hearing will take place later in Mahoning County.
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