National Public Radio reported this afternoon that The State of Georgia is going to build a toll free dedicated truck highway from Atlanta to Macon. Nothing but trucks will be allowed to use it and it will cost $2 Billion (Billion, with a “B”) dollars. It will be the first totally truck highway in the nation. It will also act as a test bed for self driving trucks and “platooned” trucks. As we know, the two southeastern class 1 carriers,CSX and NS, have been cutting back on customer service and capacity in order to achieve an ever higher OR. CSX has been doing this more than NS has, still, NS closed it’s hump at Chattanooga with the result of it’s sidings being plugged in the area. Both carriers have “run off” business, for no good reason that I can see. It seems that the industry has been on the retreat, at least in the south, where I live. I had hoped, this many years after deregulation, that the industry would be expanding and going after new business, but that is not the world we live in is it? I guess I don’t really blame GADOT for what they are doing. With railroads refusing traffic, that has to go somewhere, I might be forced to the same conclusion if I were in their place. It makes me mad and sad at the same time. The state of the southeastern carriers was totally self inflicted by these “vulture capitalists” that destroy, then take the money and run. I feel like the railroad industry, at least in the south, is on a march to total irrelevance. I wish as a society we would bring Paul Hilal, and his kind, to heal, but I know that won’t happen either. So what is the take away from all this? Get your pictures while you can. Do your train watching while you can. Have all the experiences with trains while you can. I have pretty much lost faith in the industry to be able to survive it’s own incompetence and slothfulness.
Why don’t trucking pay for it, guess i will stop here might make a few mad [:‘(][:’(][:'(].
I remember my Dad talking about the “new” Interstate system that was proposed and just starting to be built. The original reason to build the Interstates were to help evacuate cities in the event of a nuclear attack, but outside of an evacuation, the Interstates were to be for trucks only. People were trying to figure out what constituted a “truck” so they could buy something that was permissible to use on the new road so they could pack up the familly and go on vacation using the new roads.
Then it was recognized that if the general public were prohibited from using the new roads, they would have no idea how to drive on them sensibly, nor know where they went and they would thus be worse than useless.
I wonder how many tax payers in Georia will question the use of their money for something they are not to be allowed to use.
This is why (despite current speed limits), the Interstates were designed to be driven at high speeds - wide curves, etc.
Let’s not forget the original law creating the system: National Interstate and Defense Highways Act.
I recall hearing at one point that one design criterea for the roads was the ability to handle tanks and the like, which explains the use of concrete instead of asphalt.
And I recall seeing convoys of tanks on the Interstates years ago.
Ike got the idea from running those down the Autobahns.
If you drive I-95 much, you will undoubtedly pass one or more military convoys traveling to or from one of the multitude of military bases that are adjacent to the route of I-95.
I dunno. $2 Billion for approx. 90 miles of freeway seems pretty low. At a 300 wide ROW, you would need to buy something like 3,300 acres of property- a lot of it in prime real eastate areas. Are you sure the $2 Billion wouldn’t be eaten up just buying the dirt?
Trucks do pay some of the costs for roads in the form of fuel and other taxes.
<
You are too kind. I prefer “Chestburster Capitalist”.
They burrow into the live victim, living off them for some time, and when they are done leap outward and onward to the next one, discarding the host’s ruined corpse.
As I understand it, this is a plan to add two, barrier-separated truck-only lanes to the existing I-75 interstate highway. It is a long-term plan that won’t be finished until 2029 at the earliest. I would expect it to make the road safer and to reduce delays. Will it increase truck traffic over the alternative status-quo? I don’t know.
- Ed Kyle
The Garden State Parkway use to have truck lanes separated by guard rails from the passenger lanes. Cars were allowed on the truck lanes. Years ago (back in the 70’s) coming home (North Jershey) from the shore use to take the truck lane as the passenger lanes were jammed up. One benefit is learning to ride “rocking chair.” Which now living in Central PA is a much used skill.
If I were a taxpayer in Georgia I’d be pretty upset about the toll-free subsidy to the trucking industry.
To be similarly fair, the state should build new 2-track main line tracks that any railroad company could use for free. Signals / PTC could take care of spacing and other saferty issues.
- PDN.
They got a private-public company to build the toll lanes for the passenger cars so they must have some extra money laying around after enacting that big fuel tax in 2015. 
Besides if the go to all that work of deeping the Port of Savannah and nobody uses it someone will look bad.
I believe you are mistaking the Turnpike for the Parkway. In the old days the truck lanes started somewhere around exit 8, but I always went by way of 9 at New Brunswick so it didn’t matter. Now I think the separate truck lanes go all the way to the bridge to Pennsylvania.
Yes, if you didn’t mind running cheek by jowl with trucks and buses, you could easily run 100mph in the truck lanes sometimes when the car-only lanes were down to a crawl. (And don’t forget to take the “Lincoln Tunnel exit” to get on the eastern extension, to get a nifty view of the PRR coming around the long curve out of the tunnel and across the long embankment, instead of the sorry view of ‘meadowlands’ on the other route, complicated in those days by being only 2 lanes wide in places and subject to delays.)
Port of Savannah container handlings are on the rise.
Walking along the Savannah River and watching a freighter moving past you is awe inspiring that you can be that close to that big of a object that is moving. Current ocean going vessels dwarf the stature of mankind.
From what I’ve read, it’s to be 38 miles of two lane northbound from Macon, exclusively for trucks. I would hope it would be tolled (for once) to reflect its full cost. Tired of distorted economics “for the common good”.
So GDOT says this is for 77 lane-miles of widening for trucks only, or 38 route miles (Just $47 M per route mile) where the current flow in I-75 is 8500 trucks per day, or 118 M truck-miles a year over the entire segment. The yearly capital costs of $1.8 B even at low government backed rates would be $144 M a year or so with maintenance atop that. However, they are only adding northbound lanes, so the total flow would be 59 M truck-miles plus future growth.
http://www.dot.ga.gov/BS/Projects/MMIP
http://www.truckinginfo.com/channel/fleet-management/news/story/2017/11/georgia-dot-moves-forward-on-commercial-vehicle-only-lanes-project.aspx
So the capital cost could be repaid at a rate of $144 M a year / 59 M truck-miles indicates a toll would be required of a mere $2.44 a truck-mile (more than the current total price to customer for trucking) and only if all northbound trucks are required to use the new “dedicated” lanes.
But there is no toll proposed. An innovative; give away …
http://www.ttnews.com/articles/georgia-dot-proposes-trucks-only-lanes-along-i-75-near-atlanta
Or a boondoggle…
https://uspirg.org/sites/pirg/files/cpn/USN-041817-A2-REPORT/highway-boondoggles-3.html
https://www.myajc.com/news/local/audit-state-approved-billion-road
And then you need a railroad interested in a shuttle service.
Regards, Volker
While not directly related to the Georgia screwing of it’s taxpayers, Georgia is not alone: Foxconn will be building a facility in Racine county (just south of Milwaukee county). They are the beneficiary of special legislation that set up Foxconn’s $3 billion in tax credits and breaks, snd has also authorized $252.4 million in borrowing to complete the expansion of I-94 in Racine County.
https://www.biztimes.com/2017/ideas/government-politics/foxconn-wants-autonomous-vehicle-lane-as-part-of-i-94-expansion/
Nevermind that the rest of the state’s roads are crumbling.
https://rightwisconsin.com/2017/07/05/statement-from-tda-on-transportation-debate At least the toady governor can look all smarmy at press conferences.
Lately, I’ve been thinking items like this aren’t really being done to subsidize the trucking industry. Yes, they do benefit because it keeps their costs lower and encourges the use of trucks, but the real subsidy is to shippers/receivers. Especially the major corporations, the same ones that complain about rail rates. And also usually extort economic subsidy in many forms from local and state governments when they announce either building a new facility or threatening to close an existing one.
I believe most trucking companies will, as much as possible eat certain costs to retain business. The large industrial corporations now this. They also know that eventually there comes a point when trucking companies can no longer do this. They run out of a choice of companies because all have reached that point and they can’t play off one against another. Unless they want to use the “zombie” truckers that were once discussed. So the next thing to keep transportation costs low is to get more subsidy out of the general public. Instead of making truckers pay for it, and possibly having to pass on costs to the shippers, just let taxpayers pay for it. The reasoning to do this will be that it will keep costs from rising in the long run for the taxpayers, i.e. consummers. It won’t of course, but such truths have never stopped any politican before.
Besides, in the political world, money spent on railroad projects are viewed as “subsidies.” Money spent on highway (and other t