Following President Trump’s State of the Union address, the Alliance for Toll-Free Interstates issued the following statement, which can be attributed to spokesperson Stephanie Kane:
“President Trump now touts a $1.5 trillion infrastructure package, but in vague and grandiose terms that fail to address the most significant aspect of the plan: where funding will come from. If Trump relies on the private sector and forcing states and localities to come up with their own funding, Trump’s infrastructure plan could result in a patchwork of tolls that span coast to coast. This approach is not innovative or good policy - it is simply a nationwide call for #TrumpTolls. There is a real opportunity for a long-term solution to our transportation infrastructure needs, but it shouldn’t include tolling our interstates.
“An infrastructure plan relying on Trump Tolls to pay for roads is a complete reversal of President Trump’s commitment to putting America First. Although then-candidate Trump campaigned against lining the pockets of Wall Street and promised to be the voice for the working class, a plan pushing tolls would do the opposite. We urge President Trump not to choose Wall Street over Main Street. Tolls would take money from hardworking Americans and give huge profits to toll road investors – many of which are foreign companies.
“Tolls are a wildly inefficient tax, sacrificing money that could go toward construction instead going to corporate profits and administrative costs. In addition to the diversion onto secondary roads which causes congestion and public safety issues, tolls will do unimaginable harm to businesses, as shipping and manufacturing prices skyrocket to account for these new costs.”
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