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5:15 p.m. • 2-10-12

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Public Can Learn More About Proposed Wake Toll Roads


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Toll Roads
Toll Roads
Residents can get input Thursday on three highways in western Wake County, which could become the state's first toll roads.

The three roadways -- the Triangle Parkway, the Western Wake Parkway and part of Interstate 540 from N.C. Highway 54 to N.C. 55 -- would all connect. Triangle Parkway extends N.C. Highway 147 3.5 miles from Interstate 40 in Durham County to Interstate 540 in Wake County. The Western Wake Parkway extends from I-540 from N.C. Highway 55 south of Morrisville to N.C. 55 south of Apex.

The plan set forth by the North Carolina Turnpike Authority is to toll the three roads all at the same time. Turnpike officials said the benefit to having toll roads is that it gets the roads built two to three times faster.

"We hope to have the whole corridor open by no later than 2011," said Steve Dewitt, of the North Carolina Turnpike Authority.

However, some mayors in western Wake County say the current plan is not fair. Drivers on the western part of I-540 would have to pay while the other sections, open now, are free.

"The Outer Loop is nearly two-thirds finished and to complete the rest of it with a tolling mechanism, I find, is certainly not equitable to western Wake County and it's certainly not good public policy," said Apex Mayor Keith Weatherly.

The mayors in western part of Wake County must approve the plan before it can go forward. That vote is expected this summer. Residents can find out more about the toll road plan from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Apex High School cafeteria at 1501 Laura Duncan Road.

RELATED TOPICS: Wake County, Durham County, Apex, Morrisville, Durham

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I am personally opposed to tolls on any section, unless ALL sections of 540 is toll. My tax dollars and yours paid for those parts already in place, feels like I am supporting North Raliegh and they expect me to pay for my own (Support Me - My bills are ours, your bills are yours).

Has anyone done any number crunching from the hand outs from tonights meeting? The propose cost is between $405 to $725 million dollars for 12.6 miles of roads. That equates to $32.1 to $57.5 Million Dollars per MILE, does anyone else think that is excessive?

Seems DOT, NCTA, WCC and WCPS all have something in common, poor planning and wanting piles and piles of tax payer money to spend.

As a former apex resident and now in RTP, I agree that putting tolls on our roads is not the answer to our growth problems and i extremely unfair to residents of West of Raleigh. If tolls are implemented, implement them on ALL segments of I-540. This would be much more fair to all and reduce the cost of each toll.

I don't relish the heat the turnpike 'authority' will take as they enbark on this latest tax on good citizens.

ps - we moved away from Apex within months of finding out about the US1/64 and NC55 expansion projects.

If the "out-of-towners" want things like they were back home,then,get on one of the future TOLL(tax)roads and head in the opposite direction.It really annoys me the way the government thinks that we(the people)have an endless supply of MONEY!

...Once they build toll booths on I-540, they'll toll I-440, then they'll toll I-40, then we'll have tolls everywhere. Toll booths permanent cash pots for politicians and their 'fat cat' big-business buddies...

It's actually quite silly. They claim it's only to help expedite the construction of this road, but it won't return a penny till it's completed. Meanwhile up on the the northern end where the road already exists and they are benefited from being first class citizens taking advantage of the money we here have paid to build that road there is no mention to put tolls there to start collecting money immediately to help build this road now where we are. Why? cause the spineless politicians and bureaucrats no longer have a "carrot" in the hand to justify what amounts to a tax increase.

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