Legislators Sponsor Bills to Stop Toll Plans for Sakonnet River Bridge

January 28, 2013

Source: RIDOT

In conjunction with Rep. John G. Edwards (D- Portsmouth, Tiverton), Senators Walter S. Felag Jr. and Louis P. DiPalma are sponsoring legislation that would effectively stand in the way of the Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority placing a toll on the Sakonnet River Bridge.

Representative Edwards sponsors the first House bill repealing Article 20 of the Fiscal Year 2013 budget. The legislation would prevent the Rhode Island Department of Transportation from turning control of the Sakonnet River and Jamestown Verrazzano bridges over to RITBA, as Article 20 currently allows.

Article 20 additionally gives RITBA the right to implement a toll on the Sakonnet River Bridge, which connects the towns of Portsmouth and Tiverton. The authority would then have absolute control over the funds collected from those tolls.

“My hope is that these bills send a clear message to my colleagues that this issue is not dead and must be revisited,” Representative Edwards said. “Putting a toll on the Sakonnet River Bridge will devastate the small businesses in my district and Newport County. It will also be another tax on the residents of this area and a short-sighted one at that.”

Senator Felag (D –Warren, Bristol, Tiverton), who sponsors the bill in the Senate, further elaborated: “If the governor and the General Assembly truly want economic development, they must rescind this toll so that businesses will not stay away.”

The second bill– also sponsored by Representative Edwards – replaces the four RITBA appointments from the governor with the following: the mayor of Newport or his/her elected designee, the Town Council president of Portsmouth or his/her elected designee, the Town Council president of Tiverton or his/her elected designee and the Town Council president of Jamestown or his/her elected designee. Under this legislation, all members with the exception of the director of transportation would have to be residents of Newport County.

Senator DiPalma (D –Middletown, Little Compton, Newport, Tiverton) plans to introduce legislation mirroring the second House bill in the Senate.

“As a representative of my constituents in both Tiverton and Portsmouth, it is my duty to find a way to settle the matter of the Sakonnet River Bridge tolls in an equitable manner,” Representative Edwards said. “This is going to have a massive effect on not only the residents of Aquidneck Island, but on the business community. With economic development our number one priority in the General Assembly, we cannot afford to allow a measure like this bridge toll to stifle our efforts.”

Cosponsors of the first House bill include Representatives Raymond E. Gallison Jr. (D –Bristol, Portsmouth), Kenneth A. Marshall (D – Bristol, Warren), Dennis M. Canario (D –Portsmouth, Little Compton, Tiverton) and Jan P. Malik (D – Warren, Barrington). The legislation has been referred to the House Finance Committee. Those same cosponsors have signed onto the second House bill, which has been referred to the House Committee on Municipal Government.

Senator Felag’s companion to the bill repealing Article 20 is cosponsored by President of the Senate M. Teresa Paiva Weed (D – Newport, Jamestown) and Senators Christopher S. Ottiano (R –Portsmouth, Bristol), David E. Bates (R –Barrington, Bristol, East Providence) and Louis P. DiPalma (D –Middletown, Little Compton, Newport, Tiverton). The legislation has been referred to the Senate Finance Committee.

January 28, 2013

Comments (5)

Comment Feed

Costs to get off and back on Aquidneck Island

Let's get some things straight here. People on both ends of the Island have had a variety of costs to get off and back onto the Island for over 80 years.

1) The Mount Hope Bridge had tolls from 1929 until 1998. Originally, they were very expensive ($1.00 in 1929).

2) The Sakonnet Bridge wasn't built opened until 1956, 27 years later. Access to Tiverton was by the Stone Bridge, which although it was free, it was not really equipped to handle heavy traffic and had to be closed after damage by Hurricane Carol in 1954, and reopened for a short time only, until the Sakonnet Bridge opened.

3) The Braga Bridge in Fall River didn't open until 1966. before that to go from the island to Providence withoiut paying the mount Hope toll, drivers had to go through Tiverton, through Fall River to Somerset and take Rte. 6 into Providence. Although there was no toll, it was a lot of work.

4) Regular users of the Pell Bridge have always had discount avaiable to them of from 50% up to almost 90%. Even out-of-state regular commuters to Groton can get those 90% off fares. Before that, they had to pay for both "the Ferry" and for the Jamestown Bridge.

5) It took almost 20 years for "upstate" politicians and voters to approve the funding/bonds for the the Pell Bridge.

This is an Upstate/Downstate issue. Remember the Toll Booth which was proposed for I-95 a year or two ago? Where did they want to place it? Almost at the Connecticut Line. Meaning, Upstate people would rarely be affected. [They all wouy\ld have found a quick alternate route to Foxwoods, if it actually was put into place.]

Upstate people have always had a free ride on all of their bridges (including overpasses, which are bridges). They all benefit from the money which flows North from Newport County into the State Treasury. And, by all estimates, that seems to be disproportionately more than what their communities contribute.

Everybody in the State benefits from the traffic which passes over those bridges. Everybody should bear the cost of maintenance. If a toll is placed on the Sakonnet Bridge, then Otherwise, every major bridge in the State should have a toll; and a contribution by every community based on the square footage of road surface of their over passes maintained by the State.

Nor'Easter 93 days ago

Bridge toll

What Bill writes has some sense to it. As an example, the workers at Electric Boat had to pay full tolls for many years before anything was done to help repeat users. All of a sudden our legislators, business owners and people who have to cross the Sakonnet feel it is unfair to charge a toll for those who use the new bridge. The people against the toll got a free ride for many years while using the old Sakonnet bridge while those who used the Newport (Pell) bridge have been paying since it was erected. Where was the outcry for people using the bridge to the south? Maybe we felt it was only right to pay if we used it. It would have been appreciated if we had a reduced charge-----but we paid because we used it. Do the same to the north---use it--pay for it!

Ace 94 days ago

Bridge Tolls

The people in the southern end of Aquidneck Island have been paying a Newport Bridge toll for the last 50 years. How about eliminating this toll and having the people in the northern end of the Island pay a Sakonnet Bridge toll for the next 50 years.

Bill 94 days ago

Bridge Toll

If you don't wanna pay for it then tear it down and sell it for scrape.

Mikey 101 days ago

Bill repealing Article 20

Leave it to our local leaders-----if it did not work before, try again so we can screw it up once more. Article 20 placed the Sakonnet River bridge and the Jamestown Verrazanno Bridge under the jurisdiction of the RITBA. If Article 20 is repealed the state will be responsible to maintain both bridges. Am I mistaken to think that the state was responsible for the condition of the old Sakonnet Bridge? Our local leaders obviously want more of the same past mismanagement and disregard for public safety. I drive over the two bridges that the RITBA are responsible to maintain and I feel secure in stating that the RITBA take much better care of their properties than the state of Rhode Island does with the properties it is supposed to care for. If I was a bridge contractor-----I would love to have the state maintain the Sakonnet Bridge and the Verrazanno Bridge----at least I would know that my siblings would be replacing these bridges in another 40/50 years based on past history. Our local leaders are trying to legislate the elimination of a toll being implemented on the Sakonnet Bridge using an end around approach. Deal with the issue of the toll----please do not put the bridges back in the hands of the people who let it fall into disrepair!

Ace 109 days ago