Toll break proposal for I-190 gains steam

Congressman Brian Higgins wants commuters on Interstate 190 to keep their quarters in their pockets.

In an effort to remove the tolls on I-190, Rep. Higgins, D-Buffalo, is citing a 1968 piece of legislation that says the tolls on the highway can be removed after the debt for its construction had been paid back to the state.

That debt was discharged in 1996, but Western New Yorkers are still paying, thanks to a 1992 agreement that says fees could still be collected on what is also known as the Niagara Thruway.

Now Higgins insists that the 14-year-old Toll Facility Agreement -- made between the New York State Department of Transportation and the New York State Transit Authority -- needs to be reviewed and subsequently amended to eliminate the tolls.

"This is a matter of simple fairness," Higgins said in a press release. "Buffalo commuters have supported New York's roadways for far too long, and it's high time that the Federal Highway Administration takes a second look at these agreements."

According to Higgins, the 1992 agreement failed to consider the spirit of the 1968 Niagara Toll Removal Act, which is still on record and calls for the tolls to be removed now that the state has repaid the debt. Higgins' proposal would remove the Black Rock Toll barrier between Porter Avenue and the Scajaguada Expressway and the Buffalo Toll Barrier at the southern terminus of I-190.

Higgins' plan should be well received because people that use that route into the city are aware of how quickly the money adds up. Many even choose to take Route 33 into the city to avoid paying.

"I think (Higgins' plan) is pretty good because when I go downtown I usually go out of my way to avoid those tolls," said Chris Mecca, a UB freshman undecided major who travels to the city from Angola. "I live pretty far from the city and I have to pay tolls on the 90 so it would be nice to pay one less one."

"The commute to and from the city is made painful by those tolls," said Matthew Clouden, a freshman business major. "When I go to 'Thursday at the Square' or something I have to pay, and no one likes to pay extra to go somewhere with gas prices as high as they are now. I agree with Higgins and I hope these tolls get removed."

Higgins sees the toll removal linked to the issue of Buffalo's "economic doldrums that have plagued our region for years."

"The continued imposition of what amounts to a vehicular commuter tax upon personal and commercial vehicles only serves to further discourage economic activity in the city's downtown corridor."

Commuters who take the I-190 every day to work pay more than $180 each year in tolls. The number increases if they pay tolls on I-90 or go through both tolls on I-190.

Higgins cites common notions of fairness as well as federal and state legislation as reasons that this toll should be removed.

"The Thruway Authority's practice of forcing the weakest economy in New York State to subsidize other portions of New York's Interstate system is unfair," Higgins said.

The fight for removal of these tolls has garnered bipartisan support, counting people such as Republican County Executive Joel Giambra and Buffalo businessman Carl Paladino as supporters.