Truckers are protesting huge toll hikes set to go into effect this fall at Delaware River bridges.
At some bridges, five-axle tractor-trailers will see their tolls more than quadruple, from $4 to $16.25.
The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission approved the increase to fund a $526 million improvement program for the 20 bridges under its control. Only seven of the crossings charge tolls, and many truckers are upset that they will be footing the bill for bridges they're not using.
Of the affected bridges, the two that carry the most truck traffic are Trenton-Morrisville, which takes I-95 traffic across the river; and Easton-Phillipsburg, which carries a lot of truck traffic on I-78 from the Pennsylvania cities of Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton into New Jersey and on up into New York.
The new rates are scheduled to go into effect when E-ZPass becomes operational at the bridges, which is expected to happen by December.
Jim Runk, president of the Pennsylvania Motor Truck Assn., predicts truckers will avoid major bridges and detour through small towns in search of less-expensive crossings. A study done for Roadway Express found that a toll increase would send 150,000 trucks a year over free or cheaper crossings.
James Sandt, a local independent trucker from Palmer Township, Pa., wrote in a letter to the Allentown, Pa., Morning Call that with his average of three trips a day, he will see his average yearly toll costs go up from $2,400 to $9,000 or more. And while the Pennsylvania Motor Truck Assn. is predicting the higher costs will eventually be passed on to the consumer, Sandt says that's not so easy for independent truckers like himself.
At some bridges, five-axle tractor-trailers will see their tolls more than quadruple, from $4 to $16.25.
The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission approved the increase to fund a $526 million improvement program for the 20 bridges under its control. Only seven of the crossings charge tolls, and many truckers are upset that they will be footing the bill for bridges they're not using.
Of the affected bridges, the two that carry the most truck traffic are Trenton-Morrisville, which takes I-95 traffic across the river; and Easton-Phillipsburg, which carries a lot of truck traffic on I-78 from the Pennsylvania cities of Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton into New Jersey and on up into New York.
The new rates are scheduled to go into effect when E-ZPass becomes operational at the bridges, which is expected to happen by December.
Jim Runk, president of the Pennsylvania Motor Truck Assn., predicts truckers will avoid major bridges and detour through small towns in search of less-expensive crossings. A study done for Roadway Express found that a toll increase would send 150,000 trucks a year over free or cheaper crossings.
James Sandt, a local independent trucker from Palmer Township, Pa., wrote in a letter to the Allentown, Pa., Morning Call that with his average of three trips a day, he will see his average yearly toll costs go up from $2,400 to $9,000 or more. And while the Pennsylvania Motor Truck Assn. is predicting the higher costs will eventually be passed on to the consumer, Sandt says that's not so easy for independent truckers like himself.
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