"The law" prevented OK to tolling PA/I-80 - LaHood (AT LAST!)

The Federal Highway Administration officially announced this afternoon in a short five paragraph statement that it declined to approve tolling on I-80 in Pennsylvania "because the application did not meet the federal requirement that toll revenues be used exclusively for the facility being tolled."

The statement quotes US secretary of transportation Ray LaHood  as saying: "I care about the transportation needs of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and since I became Secretary of Transportation, I’ve traveled there 10 times. In addition, we have provided $1.4 billion in Recovery Act funds to Pennsylvania over the last year to jump start the economy and put people back to work… We based today’s decision on what is allowable under federal law."

The news release continues:

"The Interstate System Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Pilot Program requires that revenue from tolls be used only to improve the tolled facility, in this case I-80, and not be directed toward other state funding needs or transportation projects elsewhere in the state, as is the case in the Pennsylvania application."

The statement concludes that Pennsylvania ranks sixth in stimulus grants from the US government.

Press office deception

The statement though dated Tuesday April 6 was sent to journalists requesting comment around mid-afternoon Thursday April 7 - more than a day after news of the decision was broken in Harrisburg by the Patriot-News newspaper and 20 hours after Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell announced it officially at a 45 minute press conference in the state capital. There is still (Apr 7 15:35) no sign of the statement on the USDOT website under Briefing Room/Press Release.

Copy of the statement:

http://www.tollroadsnews.com/sites/default/files/LaHood.docx

FOLLOWUP: Nancy Singer, press officer at USDOT insists the statement was issued yesterday and is accurately dated. None of the news accounts, nor the wire services cite the statement. And the statement was not posted to the Press Releases column of the USDOT website. We asked for a copy of any statement they were making first thing this morning and got it mid-afternoon.

In no meaningful sense was this statement issued on the day it is dated.

TOLLROADSnews 2010-04-07