What they really should be doing is taking the money (increase or not) and improving this worthless road that can't even handle the traffic already on it. Why not fix the EZ-Pass system that doesn't work? No thanks - I'll be avoiding the turnpike as much as I can

Hey, we found DB Cooper!

Fact of the matter is, Pennsylvania has low tolls already. Trying crossing the GW bridge at $9 per trip. We also have one of the worst bridge ratings in the country (admittedly due to the age factor, PA being one of the older states in our great nation).

Our options are limited-- either raise state taxes on EVERYONE, or tax (toll) those who USE the facilities heaviest to recover some much needed money for investment in the infrastructure as a whole. With the extra revenue, we can improve the turnpike everyone complains about, improve the bridges that are a safety risk, and smooth the rides everyone complains about. We can widen intersections and better traffic congestion. It's common sense. I know people don't like paying that extra 50 cents to travel 75 miles to work, but honestly-- we should be taxing you for your unnecessary greenhouses gases and carbon monoxide to/from work every day, and put it towards healthcare. Luckily your already forced to pay additional in gas tax.

Maybe if we made it cost prohibitive to commute long distances by vehicles, the infrastructure wouldn't take such a beating, there wouldn't be so much road rage, there would be less traffic, there wouldn't be so much pollution, there would be less demand for gas (ie, lower prices overall), and lastly-- people would have to spend more time with their families and less for work purposes (what a novel idea).

So here's the logic. You have a system to maintain a major transportation route through the state. It is set up to be self-sufficient. For the most part its a viable system with revenue being enough to maintain and expand the route as necessary. So along comes Harrisburg. Apparently they can't stand the idea of citizens being separated from money without them being directly involved. So they turned their sights on this revenue stream and claimed some of it as their own. Not just skimming off the top but flat out extortion with no concern of the viability of the system.

So what do we have now? Well it seems that the money grabbing SOB's in Harrisburg didn't count on users of the turnpike changing there habits when gas prices went through the roof. Use and revenue is down but the Harrisburg mafia still wants its protection money so up go the toll prices almost guarantying users will continue to car pool even with gas prices dropping. Car poolers might be willing to accept the toll increase but the solo drivers will now be encourage to find alternatives and thus begins the cycle of falling revenue and toll increases.

Mark my words, act 44 will be pointed to as the cause of the turnpike system's failure.

First, this isn't about maintaining the turnpike. This is about taxing turnpike users to subsidize the maintenance of roads and bridges outside of the turnpike system. Second, PA already collects more than enough money to maintain its infrastructure. It just chooses to spend that money on other things. An even bigger problem is tax money collected by the federal government and then re-distributed for road and bridge work. This should not be a function of the federal government. Let that money stay in the states where it belongs.