I-81 plan proposes tolls for trucks, cars

ABINGDON, Va. — Paying for $2 billion in needed improvements along Interstate 81 could include charging tolls for passenger cars and commercial trucks, sales and fuel tax increases or some combination of those, according to a draft plan.

State transportation officials unveiled details of the I-81 plan Monday during a public hearing at the Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center in Abingdon. The draft plan proposes funding 72 previously identified safety and congestion improvements along the 325-mile route between Bristol and Winchester. The study was ordered by the General Assembly to identify needed improvements and an independent funding source separate of the state’s annual transportation budget.

When the study began in the spring, the funding conversation mentioned taxes in the corridor area and potentially charging tolls to large, commercial vehicles. The draft plan, which will be forwarded to the Commonwealth Transportation Board, includes tolling cars.

“The study actually named tolling heavy commercial vehicles, but it didn’t prohibit us from looking at a myriad of different sources,” Virginia Secretary of Transportation Shannon Valentine said after the meeting.

Read more: https://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/i--plan-proposes-tolls-for-trucks-cars/article_7725f97b-c7eb-5fb5-b637-da26eafaf9a2.html