RITA renewing call to repeal truck tolls

By: Rebecca Turco

Email: rturco@abc6.com

WEST GREENWICH, R.I – The Rhode Island Trucking Association is urging people to vote legislators who approved the Rhode Works plan out of office. 

Chris Maxwell, the president of RITA, renewed his call for lawmakers to repeal the governor’s plan to toll big rig trucks to pay for road and bridge repairs. 

"We’re just getting started," he said. Maxwell made the analogy that if the 38 Studios fiasco is considered a benign tumor then, "Rhode Works is a malignant cancer that will just continue to metastasize and continue to cripple Rhode Island’s already compromised economy."

Governor Gina Raimondo, meanwhile, is applauding the legislators who approved her Rhode Works plan. "Everyone benefits from safe roads," she explained. "Businesses benefit from good roads and bridges. So I would say anyone who had the courage to vote for it and do the right thing, did the right thing for Rhode Island."

Rhode Works recently got the go-ahead from the federal government, though Maxwell argues there is some leeway there. 

Instead, he feels we should raise the diesel tax by 19 cents. "Let’s be realistic: trucks do more damage than cars," said Maxwell. "It should be a shared burden but we don’t believe tolling is the way to go."

But tolling remains the way to go for the governor. "Do the work, put people to work and have the funds we need to be able to fix our roads and bridges," Raimondo said. 

The RI Trucking Association has the backing of a national travel plaza and truck stop group (NATSO), plus a vocal minority of legislators. 

The RI Department of Transportation is expecting the tolls to be ready late next year or early 2018. 

(C) WLNE-TV 2016