law

The state house in Maine has passed unanimously (144 to 0) a bill that greatly reduces the independence of the state Turnpike - a reaction to the self-indulgence under former CEO Paul Violette. Major loss of power comes with a provision that the proposed annual budget of the Turnpike must be submitted and approved by the Legislature each year. And an independent auditor will vet expenditures.

Judge William E Smith of US District Court in Rhode Island ruled against claims in a class action suit that Rhode Island bridge authority's discounted toll schedule for state residents is unconstitutional.

The Ambassador Bridge company 's lawyer is back in court asking for "relief" from orders to demolish fuel pumps, underground storage tanks and their approach to a planned parallel bridge span. Michigan DOT says the works don't fulfill the terms of a contract they signed to jointly build a $230m new "Gateway" - new direct connector ramps to nearby interstate highways and a new toll and border inspection plaza with duty freestores, gasoline/diesel fueling pumps.

Ambassador Bridge owner Manuel 'Matty' Moroun dramatically transformed what was billed as a short, narrowly focussed "contempt of court" issue before a Wayne County Court judge into a broader hearing of the merits of a long-running dispute between Michigan DOT and the Bridge company.

In an important legal case the US Court of Appeals has upheld the right of a toll authority to offer discounts to users of its transponder, while denying users' of other transponders the same lower toll rate.

A judge in Detroit said he is preparing to cite Ambassador Bridge company president Dan Stamper for contempt of court for failure to comply with his order to produce a schedule for demolition of unapproved construction. The construction is built as approaches for a new twin span opposed by the Michigan state government and governments on the Canadian side.

Former Pennsylvania Turnpike chairman Mitchell Rubin, 58 of Philadelphia pled guilty to an obstruction of justice charge in US District Court in Philadelphia today finalizing a plea bargain. He admitted to misleading investigators about his no-work contracts arranged by his close friend Senator Vincent Fumo and his relationships with Fumo - now serving a 5 year jail term.

Indiana governor Mitch Daniels has signed SB382 into law allowing the state to move forward to develop toll concessions or public-private aprtnerships (P3s) for the Illiana Expressway and Ohio River bridges.

The law suit against diversion of Turnpike (I-90) monies to the untolled Big Dig (I-93) in Boston by wellknown class action lawyer Jan Schlichtmann has been rebuffed again in the courts. An appeal against an earlier ruling for the Turnpike by county superior court judge Herman Smith was this week upheld by an appeals court which characterized Smith's ruling as "a thorough opinion."

Saying the plaintiffs look unlikely to prevail on the merits of their case a judge in Massachusetts has denied them an injunction against the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority.

The law suit joined by some 2300 Turnpike users and organized by class action lawyer Jan Schlichmann claims that use of Turnpike toll revenues to maintain and service the debt of the untolled Big Dig project makes such tolls into taxes, which are therefore, the suit claims, illegal and unconstitutional.