Heather Curtis
WMAL.com

WASHINGTON (WMAL) – One of many efforts to suspend or cap tolling for solo drivers using I-66 inside the beltway at rush hour hit a road block Thursday evening when the northern Virginia Transportation Commission voted 13 to 5 to postpone action on a resolution to do that until January.

“I’m not sure that it has the support on that commission because there’s a lot of people from the inner suburbs that are quite ok with basically pricing people out of their cars and forcing them into transit rather than making transit the better option,” said commission member and Loudoun County Board of Supervisors member Ron Meyer.

Transportation Secretary Aubrey Lane said capping tolls would eliminate the benefits of dynamic tolling and said that option would not be considered.

Lane believes the people complaining about the tolls were using the road illegally before by driving on it at rush hour without passengers in their cars.

“It’s perplexing to me that many are concerned about the toll because they couldn’t use the road to begin with,” Lane said.

Meyer said he’s ok with leaving dynamic tolling but would like to see it reconfigured to make sure prices are reasonable but also allow traffic to move.

Lane crunched the numbers and released the actual tolls paid by solo drivers Monday morning. In a press release Thursday, Lane said 34 percent of vehicles paid less than $10, and 38 percent paid nothing because they carpooled. Only 39 vehicles, according to Lane’s calculations, paid $34.50. A posted toll near $40 infuriated people Monday morning and garnered national attention.

Meanwhile, Thursday Democrats who represent Northern Virginia on the general assembly called for the tolls to be suspended until greater transit options are put in place.

Meyer said there is wide bipartisan support to make sure the tolls aren’t astronomical.

“If you look at the sloth people that are uniting on this issue, it really should say something to Secretary Lane, to Governor McAuliffe, but unfortunately it seems like they’re putting their heads in the sand,” Meyer said.

Lane said the Virginia Department of Transportation will continue to release information about the actual tolls people are paying.

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