Rhode Island Trucking Association responds to tolls being found constitutional

PROVIDECNE, R.I. (WLNE) — The Rhode Island Trucking Association released a statement in response to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit decision that the Rhodeworks truck tolling program could resume.

The decision ruled that caps on tolls for in-state trucking were still unconstitutional, and that these trucks would be tolled at the same rate as out-of-state ones.

The association said that the decision “confirmed that the Rhodeworks caps spared” the in-state trucking industry as well as residents, and that, if the tolls are reactivated without the caps, the price of goods in the state will “increase.”

The full statement can be read below:

The First Circuit confirmed that the Rhodeworks caps spared the Rhode Island trucking industry, and the Rhode Island residents they serve, from the full burden of the tolls. If Gov. McKee and the General Assembly are considering reactivating the tolls without those protective caps, they first need to consider whether they are willing to break the promise that was made to the local business community as a condition of passage of the legislation, and be candid with Rhode Island residents that these increased costs will be reflected in the price of goods, nearly all of which reach them by truck.

As was the case nearly a decade ago when the truck-only tolling program was first introduced, the Rhode Island Trucking Association remains open and committed to working with state leadership to find a more sustainable and equitable infrastructure funding solution that does not so egregiously impact our local businesses and consumers.