Harris County Toll upping rates a quarter, but pols quickly baulk at congestion pricing

Posted on Fri, 2007-06-22 00:48

Harris County commissioners on Tuesday this week (Jun 19) agreed to a set of toll rate policies designed to generate toll concession equivalent value for the county. But on Thursday (Jun 21) they backed down in the face of criticism, retreating to familiar public toll authority politics.

At Tuesday's meeting county commissioners voted unanimously in favor of:

- a 25c increase in car tolls at most toll points representing a 25% increase ($1.00 to $1.25) in transponder tolls and a 20% increase ($1.25 to $1.50) in cash tolls

- congestion pricing premium tolls of $2.50, double the normal toll, for three hours inbound in the mornings and for three hours outbound in the evenings on the grossly overcrowded Westpark Tollway

- for free flowing segments tolls to be adjusted henceforth annually according to the greater of 2% and the consumer price index, cash rates to be rounded to the nearest quarter (25c) and transponder rates to the nearest nickel (5c),

- for congested segments premium tolls to be introduced and adjusted periodically to maintain traffic speeds of 50 to 60mph (80 to 97km/hr)

Tolls were last increased on the now 166km (103 miles) of tollroads in the Houston area in November 2003. The four page recommendation by HCTRA to the county commissioners (described locally as a Court) said traffic had increased 20% in the three and a half years since the last toll increase.

Extra funds were needed for:

- an expanded program to maintain pavement with overlays, joint replacements, and rebuilds in the face of deterioration from aging and traffic

- flood station pump rehabilitation

- inflation in materials and labor costs

- extra lanes at $2m/lane-mile ($1.2m/lane/km) mainline plaza improvements, improved electronic signage, toll system upgrades

- support for six new toll projects with a project cost of $4.5b (see table nearby)

The program did not provide for needed improvements in connectivity. Extra funds would be needed once this plan was ready.

Reporting focuses on tolls not traffic

Reporting focussed heavily on the decision to double tolls on the Westpark during peak hours. The Houston Chronicle report of the decision suggested "working people" would be disadvantaged by the higher tolls, overlooking the value of having the tollroad move better.

"Some drivers wondered whether commissioners have forgotten the working people.

"'There are people who have budgeted a certain amount for tolls and need to use the tollway to get to work by a certain time in the morning,' said Carol Ann Shipp in an e-mail to the Chronicle. 'These are not affluent professionals for whom the doubling of tolls is negligible. These are hardworking middle class workers who must count every penny.'

"County Commissioner Steve Radack said those who cannot afford the rush hour fees should use alternate roads.

"'Let them go down Richmond Road,'' he said. 'Or they can use Westpark,' the surface road running nearby the tollway."

An online "poll" by a TV station reported 80% public opposition to the doubled tolls rates with one respondent calling it "very communistic."

Only 2x2 lanes

In blog comments and interviews there was a lot of criticism of HCTRA for building the Westpark to only 2x2 lanes.

Typical reaction was this: "If Westpark (had been) built correctly to begin with they wouldn't need to increase (tolls). it's really only been open a couple years (since it opened). Governments infinite wisdom is 'we screwed up, so we'll have the people pay for our mistakes.' "

Fact is the right of way was controlled by the area's Metro transit agency which at one point wanted to use the width of the whole corridor to run four or five trolleys an hour. After protracted negotiations Metro agreed to sell HCTRA half the right of way, just enough for 2x2 lanes of tolllway in return for free rides for buses.

2x2 lanes was the most the toll authority could do.

Backdown

Thursday the county commissioners backed down. Their chairman Ed Emmett (styled a Judge in Texas) said the commissioners will cancel the peakhour charges at their next formal meeting.

He said commissioners realized after their Tuesday decision "there is no place for the (excess) commuters to go."

The object he said was to reduce traffic from 4,200 vehicles per hour (on two lanes) in peak hours to about 3,600.

"Many people have pointed out, and I think rightfully so, that until Interstate 10 construction projects have been completed, until Richmond Avenue (another parallel road) is widened farther out where it goes from four lanes to two lanes, and until some of the other projects are completed in the area, it doesn't make any sense to move people off of Westpark if that's our goal," said Emmett.

Before congestion pricing can be implemented he said the county needs to:
- analyze alternative routes
- work with Metro transit to get more people using buses
- get more people using carpools

Commissioners also say they will revisit the decision on annual toll increases.

COMMENT: It's a pity Houston motorists will be denied freeflowing conditions on the Westpark Tollway. The county commissioners won't get any significant number of commuters out of their cars and onto buses and carpools - that is the eternal hope of planners, but it flies in the face of reality. People with cars don't want to wait at bus stops or to walk in Houston's humid heat to and from buses. And in a city of highly dispersed workplaces and flexible working hours the chances of anyone finding a convenient carpool are very small. People need to travel their own personal route at their own times, and so they need a personal car.

Besides transit buses and carpools need freeflowing travel conditions for their vehicles to provide any decent level of service, and in the absence of congestion pricing they will be stuck in traffic too.

HCTRA made a presentational mistake. They should have presented the case for the 25c systemwide toll rate increases separately from the proposal for congestion pricing on the Westpark.

It was a good plan ineptly presented.It's hard to imagine a veteran like Wes Freise or Mike Strech doing it so clumsily. Hopefully the new guys will learn some of their smarts.

ADDITION: Wilbur Smith on congestion pricing of Westpark Tollway

Wilbur Smith Associates make the case for congestion pricing premiums on the Westpark Tollway in a ten page letter. They studied congestion in some detail, tracking speeds and volumes in different segments in the peakhour.

Typically they report speeds are between 10 and 25mph (16 to 40km/hr) in the eastbound roadway mornings in virtually the whole 5 mile (8km) segment west of the interchange with the Sam Houston Tollway where volumes in the two lanes are 4,115 veh/hour in the two lanes. This chokepoint causes backups westwards down the road. Traffic flow improves through the interchange itself as more traffic is exiting on the Sam Houston than is entering from it, but soon slows again apparently with queuing from slow merges onto US59 and local streets at the eastern end.

Westbound in the afternoons speeds are good for a couple of miles but from a bit beyond US59 speeds collapse because of 3 mile (5km) long backups from the merge of Sam Houston traffic entering the Westpark where volumes are 4,145/hour. Traffic speeds up progressively as you move west, the roadway opened up by exiters at the various off-ramps.

WSA specify 3,600 veh/hr as a "target volume" for the two travel lane roadways. This may not be "capacity" but it is apparently a threshold volume beyond which a breakdown in flow and a collapse in speed is likely. Volumes are of course above this at points already and very close to it elsewhere. Weaving and merging movements can even make 3,600 volumes risky to flow.

WSA say that there is likely latent demand due to the congestion beyond that on the tollroad at present toll rates.

They tested likely volumes against different toll rates and came up with about $2.50 as the right toll to keep volumes below 3,600/roadway. (see graphs) They said there is "considerable uncertainty" in several aspects of their analysis, and $3.00 might be needed, but toll rates should be adjusted in the light of experience.

They only expect relatively small time shift - people traveling before or after the three hour peak tolls.

Variable pricing needs to be used to manage the scarce capacity or throughput will drop steadily and fewer people will be catered to than the 3600 safe free flow number. Meanwhile maybe they need to look more carefully at what can be done to reduce the chokepoints and increase capacity.

The Westpark is both a heavy feeder to/from the Sam Houston Beltway at its midpoint but is also a classic tidal flow radial serving the central part of Houston. Some of the ramp flows are very high. Beltway to Westpark and at US59.

At a glance the lack of westfacing ramps west of the Sam Houston Beltway looks as though it may be concentrating traffic unnecessarily at that interchange. The concentration of flows off the Westpark in the morning and the volumes entering in the afternoon peak are the immediate cause of the backups.

Of course if you fix that problem you may up throughput 200 or 300 veh/hr and then run into another capacity constraint. But there may be some chokepoint improvements of this kind with a sufficient payoff in extra capacity that they are worth doing.

And at some point the restriction on two travel lanes each direction may need to be re-examined.

see http://www.hctra.org