The head of the Pennsylvania Motor Truck Association said a plan backed by Gov. Ed Rendell (D) to lease the Pennsylvania Turnpike for 75 years “does not meet the needs of the transportation community at large.”
The group is continuing “to advocate for viable, long-term alternatives that will put the public’s best interest ahead of the for-profit drive of a private entity,” said Jim Runk, PMTA’s president. “We remain committed to pursuing an equitable solution and to discussing any and all options for solving this statewide problem.”
Rendell said Monday that a group made up of a Citicorp unit and a Spanish company had the highest bid of $12.8 billion to lease the toll road for 75 years. The plan must be approved by the state legislature.
“Pennsylvanians are anxious to repair our transportation infrastructure, but with the federal government planning to evaluate it on a national level in 2009, we should be leery of speeding forward with a plan that does not take federal solutions into account,” Runk said.
“We urge legislators to consider whether this proposed solution will truly improve travel for Pennsylvania motorists along our main artery,” he said in a statement.
