12/7/06-Gov. Ed Rendell on Wednesday, Dec. 6, announced that Pennsylvania will solicit offers from private firms to determine the potential value of leasing or purchasing the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
In anticipation of the written proposals, state lawmakers have tapped two turnpike officials to craft a bill that would allow private groups to buy or lease state roads, including the 537-mile turnpike.
The House and Senate Transportation panels hired a consulting firm – led by former Turnpike Commission executive director John Durbin – and Commissioner Timothy Carson’s law firm to write legislation that would allow lawmakers to bid out state-run roads, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported.
Some lawmakers have suggested privatizing roadways, such as the turnpike and Interstate 80, as another option to a proposed 12.5-cent-per-gallon increase in fuel taxes recommended in a recent report by the state’s Transportation and Funding Reform Commission to help pay for needed road, bridge and public transit repairs. The report also recommended that lawmakers consider selling or leasing roads.
Rendell asked private groups to express their interest in selling or leasing roads through written proposals by Dec. 22.
“There are dozens of ideas that have been proposed over the years, including leasing the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Before we pursue this or any other plan to solve the transportation crisis, we need to learn more about the lease option and how much revenue it could generate,” Rendell said in a written statement.
Among the companies that have had preliminary contact with state officials about a possible lease deal include Macquarie Infrastructure Group, The Associated Press reported. The Australian-based group has been involved in similar deals in at least a handful of other states, including this year’s $3.8 billion, 75-year lease of the Indiana Toll Road.
Rendell said the value of such a long-term lease in Pennsylvania is estimated between $3 billion and $10 billion. At the same time, House Speaker John Perzel, R-Philadelphia, said an investors’ group told him that privatizing the turnpike could mean as much as $30 billion for the state.
“It is an exciting proposition to consider if we are to keep toll rates reasonable and generate enough money to make major improvements in our state’s transportation system without burdensome tax increases,” Rendell said.
The governor said he intends to offer a plan to the Legislature in January for how to proceed with any proposals.

11/27/06-A pair of prominent politicians in Pennsylvania separately pitched the idea of leasing the Pennsylvania Turnpike to a private group to generate revenue for transportation projects.
Among the companies that have contacted state officials about a possible lease deal include Macquarie Infrastructure Group, The Associated Press reported. The Austrian-based group has been involved in similar deals in at least a handful of other states, including this year’s $3.8 billion, 75-year lease of the Indiana Toll Road.
Gov. Ed Rendell said the value of such a long-term lease in Pennsylvania is estimated between $3 billion and $10 billion. At the same time, House Speaker John Perzel, R-Philadelphia, said an investors’ group told him that privatizing the turnpike could mean as much as $30 billion for the state.
“I’m not saying you could get that – but if you could and if you get 10 percent return on your money, that’ll be $3 billion a year” for roads and transit, Perzel told The Associated Press. “If we can get that kind of a figure, that’s something that absolutely has to be looked at.”
The revelations by the Democratic governor and House speaker come on the heels of a special panel in Pennsylvania that recommended roughly $1.7 billion in tax increases to help pay for needed road, bridge and public transit repairs.
The nine-member commission, which was set up by Rendell, recommends that the road improvements be funded through a 12.5-cent-per-gallon increase in fuel taxes and an increase in annual motor vehicle registration or driver license fees.
For public transit, the commission recommends a combination of state and local taxes.
Perzel predicted lawmakers aren’t likely to agree to a boost in the state’s fuel tax rate for needed transportation projects. Instead, he said a long-term lease of the 537-mile turnpike might be more viable.
Rendell said he is “very interested” in leasing the turnpike as an alternative to higher taxes. He expects the leasing idea to be “a key point” in the transportation debate when lawmakers convene the 2007 session in January.

3/9/06-Rep. Richard Geist, R-Blair, said the idea of road privatization might be one way to improve the state’s highway system and reduce taxpayer maintenance costs.
Geist, chairman of the House Transportation Committee, told “Land Line Now” that public-private partnerships for roads have worked in Europe and are becoming increasingly popular among lawmakers in the U.S.
Pennsylvania, like most states, is cash-strapped for highway dollars.
“Right now we do $1.6 billion a year in new construction,” Geist said. “The interstate restoration program on the capacity problem alone is about $6 billion a year for five years. That will give you an idea how much the needs really are there, just on the commerce side, so we have to take a very serious look at funding over the next 20 years in Pennsylvania.”