- Oregon Governor Tina Kotek has canceled a regional mobility pricing project that would have introduced tolls on Interstate 5 and Interstate 205 in Portland.
- Kotek expressed uncertainty about the feasibility of tolling, saying the increasing challenges outweigh the expected benefits.
- Kotek’s letter comes weeks after a survey found that a majority of Oregon voters oppose the Regional Mobility Pricing Project’s pricing.
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek said Monday that she wants to scrap a plan to impose tolls on large sections of two Portland-area interstates.
KGW-TV reports that Kotek sent a letter to the Oregon Transportation Commission on Monday calling for the regional mobility pricing project on Interstate 5 and Interstate 205 to be halted.
Kotek wrote in the letter that “the state’s path toward implementing tolls in the Portland metropolitan area is opaque at best,” and that the challenges associated with the plan “outweigh the anticipated benefits.” “There is,” he said.
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“Therefore, I believe it is time to end the agency’s efforts on the RMPP,” she wrote.
Oregon Governor Tina Kotek speaks at a signing ceremony in Washington on February 23, 2024. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek said Monday she is rescinding plans to impose tolls on large sections of two Portland-area interstates. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
In 2017, the state Legislature directed the Oregon Department of Transportation to begin considering tolls as a traffic congestion management tool that could be part of a major transportation funding package, but plans are being revealed. Criticism is increasing.
Kotek’s letter comes weeks after a survey found that a majority of Oregon voters oppose the Regional Mobility Pricing Project’s pricing, KOIN-TV reported.
The move comes after the Oregon Department of Transportation produced a report on the toll’s equity impacts and the agency’s plans to reduce the impact on low-income residents in Portland. In his letter, Kotek said the report found that “a fee program that keeps rates low enough for working families and raises enough money for large projects will be a major step in funding and revenue sharing for local projects.” He wrote that this shows that he is unable to meet expectations.
The state Department of Transportation faces funding challenges due to an expected decline in state gasoline tax revenue, and Kotek said he expects the Legislature to address the issue during the 2025 session. .
“We believe that a more robust conversation about funding options will result in greater understanding and direction for our future,” the governor said in the letter.
Oregon Transportation Commission Chair Julie Brown and Vice Chair Lee Beyer and Oregon Department of Transportation Secretary Chris Strickler all issued statements late Monday suggesting they agree with Kotek. .
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“Metro leadership’s view on tolling has changed,” Bayer said, adding, “Local and regional opposition to tolling makes it clear that Oregon is not ready for regional tolling.” Stated. “It is clear that we cannot design a rate program that meets the needs of Oregonians across the state while also meeting the needs expressed by our local partners,” Strickler said.
Brown said he looks forward to discussions about other funding sources, but doesn’t believe tolls should be the only tool to solve the problem, but added, “I believe that it should be one of the tools,” he added. ”
Kotek said the measure would reduce toll revenue planned for the Oregon-Washington interstate bridge, which is slated to be replaced as part of a multibillion-dollar project funded by the federal government. He said it would not affect collection.
