Thruway Authority to hold public hearings on toll-hike proposal

The New York State Thruway Authority will hold three public hearings this summer, including one locally, on its proposed 45-percent increase in tolls on commercial trucks.

The Thruway Authority will hold the two-hour hearings Aug. 16 in Buffalo, Aug. 17 in DeWitt, and Aug. 18 in Newburgh, according to the New York State Register. The Aug. 17 hearing will be at the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel near Carrier Circle from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

On May 29, the Authority proposed a 45-percent rise in tolls on the New York State Thruway for vehicles with three or more axles, which includes most commercial trucks.

Business groups and some political leaders have assailed the toll hike, saying it will lead to higher prices for consumers as trucking firms pass on their higher costs.

“An unintended consequence of a Thruway toll hike is that it will drive up the price of everything from bananas to bunk beds,” Brian M. Kolb, New York Assembly Minority Leader (R–Canandaigua), wrote in a column. “It defies economic logic to think that trucking companies will simply absorb the increased costs of doing business — they won’t. A large portion of the increased costs borne by trucking companies will be passed directly onto New York families who will pay more for necessities simply because the Thruway Authority decided to hike tolls by 45 percent.”    

Opponents of the increase have also said it will result in big trucks switching to smaller local roads, such as Route 5 and Route 20, that have no tolls.

Contact Rombel at arombel@cnybj.com