ATA Sues Rhode Island to Block Truck-Toll Plan
Rhode Island’s controversial truck-tolling plan is now the target of a federal lawsuit filed by the American Trucking Associations and three motor carriers.

Federal lawsuit, filed on July 10, contends that the state’s RhodeWorks truck-only toll scheme is unconstitutional.
Photo: PrePass
Rhode Island’s controversial truck-tolling plan is now the target of a federal lawsuit filed by the American Trucking Associations and three motor carriers. The suit, filed on July 10, contends that the state’s RhodeWorks truck-only toll scheme is unconstitutional.
Under the RhodeWorks plan, which was signed into law back in 2016, 18-wheelers will pay up to $20 to cross the state traveling on Interstate 95. A single truck will be capped at paying $40 a day.
The tolls are intended to finance a 10-year plan to repair deteriorating bridges in the Ocean State; Rhode Island has the highest percentage of structurally deficient bridges in the country. The tolls, to be collected electronically via 14 gantries, are expected to bring in around $45 million a year once they are up and running.
“Since RhodeWorks was first proposed, the trucking industry has been strong and united in opposition to this extortionate plan,” said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear in a statement. “We’ve warned politicians in Rhode Island that these truck-only tolls were unconstitutional and should be rolled back. It is unfortunate that Governor [Gina] Raimondo and her administration did not heed those warnings, but now we will see them in court.”
In the suit, ATA and Cumberland Farms Inc., M&M Transport Services Inc. and New England Motor Freight argue that the RhodeWorks plan violates the U.S. Constitution’s Commerce Clause by discriminating against out-of-state trucking companies and by designing the tolls in a way that does not fairly approximate motorists’ use of the roads.
“This toll regime was designed to, and does in fact, impose discriminatory and disproportionate burdens on out-of-state operators and on truckers who are operating in interstate commerce,” the complaint states. “By design, the tolls fall exclusively on the types of trucks that are most likely to be engaged in the interstate transport of cargo, while exempting automobiles and the smaller vehicles that are relatively more likely to be engaged in intrastate travel.
In addition, the suit holds that the toll plan “also limits the tolls collected from trucks that make multiple trips within Rhode Island in a single day, a feature that was expressly intended to, and does in fact, provide disproportionate benefits to Rhode Island operators and those engaged in intrastate commerce.”
Related: Rhode Island's Truck Tolls Remain Unpopular with Trucking Groups
More Fleet Management

Kodiak Lines Up Fleets for Driverless Trucking
An agreement for 75 trucks, a new Texas freight lane, and progress on safety validation move Kodiak closer to its planned driverless highway launch.
Read More →
ITS Logistics Settles Religious Harassment Case
The Nevada-based logistics firm agreed to pay more than $396,000 to settle a religious harassment charge involving an employee's Jewish identity.
Read More →
Your Trucks Are Busy. That Doesn’t Mean They’re Winning.
High utilization doesn’t always mean strong margins. Looking beyond the current load can help fleets make better dispatch decisions and get more value from each truck’s time.
Read More →
Why This Trucking Recovery Is Different
Freight demand remains sluggish, but rising costs and tougher enforcement have taken enough capacity out of the market to change the outlook for motor carriers.
Read More →
Platform Science Adds Dispatch and Safety Tools
Four additions to PS Fleet help fleets monitor loads, manage driver coaching, share truck locations and adjust video system settings.
Read More →
PrePass Intelligence Mines Fleet Bypass, Toll and Safety Data
PrePass Intelligence helps fleets measure bypass savings, flag potential toll overcharges, and spot suspicious transactions by combining data from separate systems.
Read More →
Motive Adds AI Agents for Fleet Operations
New tools automate follow-up on fleet data, from maintenance work orders to driver alerts, with two-way voice conversations planned for later this year.
Read More →Can You Beat Our Trucking Trivia Challenge?
Test your truck knowledge with 19 trivia questions from Heavy Duty Trucking Exchange. Can you keep up with the fleet pros?
Read More →
BeyondTrucks Adds Rules Checks to Dispatch
New Compatibility Engine checks driver qualifications, equipment requirements and fleet policies before loads are dispatched.
Read More →
Diesel Prices Hijack Trucking’s Worry List
ATRI’s annual survey finds cautious optimism about freight, but diesel costs, litigation, and insurance continue to squeeze fleets. Drivers have different priorities on several issues.
Read More →
