Re: $7.00 tolls for the tunnels

McDuck wrote:
On Sat, 15 Nov 2008 23:05:46 -0500, replyonusenet@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
wrote:

On Fri, 14 Nov 2008 23:05:17 -0500, "Raymond O'Hara"
<raymond-ohara@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

wow.
looks like bridge traffic will pick up.


Also looks like traffic through Everett/Revere will increase alot.

As it is I skip the bridge and tunnels. And this is before the
increase.

Is traffic in the tunnels fairly heavy? If so, then the price system
is working. (Been a while since I've used the tunnels, so I really
don't know --- just a question.)

What you want for a tunnel is solid flow at 40 mph or better, no
slowdowns. That is peak usage. If you get clogs, the carrying capacity
of the tunnel drops to 10% or less of peak. Bad use of a tunnel to
have ANY clogs even at rush hour. Now optimal pricing would have the
toll high at peak hurs and low the rest of the time if usage is not
heavy during midday, etc. Used to be hard to do, but with current
technology already in place, it is not so hard.

Now, if the point of the increase was JUST more revenue, it may be
stupid or counter-productive, as your comment suggests. We need to
know the traffic flows to know if the increase is good or bad policy.
In any even, IF the point is to control flows, then we want to have
people who value their money more than their time taking an
alternative route.

It is purely for revenue. Make no mistake about that. The officials will even admit that. Look. traffic flows are irrelevant in this state. The Big Dig...for all the cost...the years of construction and the disruption we had to suffer through, has actually made the problems worse. From today's Globe:

"A Globe analysis of state highway data documents what many motorists have come to realize since the new Central Artery tunnels were completed: While the Big Dig achieved its goal of freeing up highway traffic downtown, the bottlenecks were only pushed outward, as more drivers jockey for the limited space on the major commuting routes."

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/11/16/big_dig_pushes_bottlenecks_outward/

I don't use it daily...but I have yet to see a slowdown myself in the Ted Williams tunnel, except in cases where it backs up from route 93 or the airport side. It flows very well. The problems are the roads that connect...in the cases of both the O'Neill and Williams Tunnels. The problem as I see it, is all the insane money that has been funneled into highways, while we don't properly support and yes, subsidize, public transportation. They seem to do everything to encourage people to drive while making commuter rail less atractive by raising fares and just the other day, parking fees at the rail stations. It's just insane. When will people come to understand that subsidizing public transit is a no brainer? No matter what you do to improve and widen highways it simply encourages people to drive to work instead of taking the trains that actually get you in town much faster. We pay for it all one way or the other anyway. Jack the gas tax to properly make us drivers pay OUR way...not just commuters who pack the trains. That seems a much more efficient funding mechanism than lining up idling vehicles at toll booths which is also less fair to drivers that happen to use routes that collect tolls. Get rid of tolls and pay for this through gas and diesel taxes. I believe we have some of the lowest in the country BTW.

.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: $7.00 tolls for the tunnels
    ... As it is I skip the bridge and tunnels. ... That is peak usage. ... If you get clogs, the carrying capacity ... know the traffic flows to know if the increase is good or bad policy. ...
    (alt.sports.baseball.bos-redsox)
  • Re: The Northern Line that never was
    ... I went down to the Imperial War Museum today, and on the tube was thinking about the old Northern line express plans. ... an express route would help even more. ... Which may be overinterpreting - there isn't room for platforms in any of the existing tunnels, but the project to convert the shelters to a tube line could have added them. ... Plonk in a new station at Blackfriars for maximum win. ...
    (uk.transport.london)
  • Re: The Northern Line that never was
    ... I went down to the Imperial War Museum today, and on the tube was thinking about the old Northern line express plans. ... an express route would help even more. ... Which may be overinterpreting - there isn't room for platforms in any of the existing tunnels, but the project to convert the shelters to a tube line could have added them. ... Plonk in a new station at Blackfriars for maximum win. ...
    (uk.transport.london)
  • tunnel costs vs high-dollar right of way costs
    ... This article implies that in some areas the cost of ... tunnels are becoming cost-effective alternatives. ... "There's a new interest in the invisible highway - getting them out ...
    (misc.transport.road)
  • Re: Frankfort, KY to Greensboro, NC?
    ... Only two problems with that route are the tolls on the WV Turnpike and the work ... on the tunnels in Virginia. ... the I-64 to I-77 route is quickest/easiest. ... it'll be that bad through the tunnels. ...
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