Pa Turnpike Finances Never Ending Black Hole

Pa. Turnpike's finances headed south, audit finds
Ed Blazina, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette | Philly.com

"Auditor General Eugene DePasquale said at a news conference that his auditors found that the turnpike's financial health has deteriorated substantially since 2007, when the legislature began requiring the agency to make payments of $450 million a year to PennDot. The commission has had to borrow a substantial part of that money...


DePasquale also noted that the turnpike will lose nearly $20 million this year in unpaid tolls from motorists who drive through the EZ-Pass lane without an operating account"

My Comments About The Article AboveI'm 100% convinced even if Pennsylvania received double the income they'd still manage to find a way to go broke. A couple of other things worth noting.* I can't imagine why it takes over 5 years to widen a couple of lanes down by Lansdale. Everyday traffic is either backed up or shutoff by the cattle chute Jersey barriers they've put in place. Last year coming back from the shore I had a car clip one of the barriers ending up out of control directly behind me. It ended up shutting down the highway headed North. I can't imagine the amount of injuries and damage that has been sustained by this prolonged screwing around.

* The article mentions $20 million has been lost from uncollected tolls from those blowing through EZ Pass.

You can't convince me it would cost $20 million to pay toll collectors to do it the old fashion way they once did. A time when it was nearly impossible to blow through any of these collection stations especially when there were a few vehicles lined up ahead.