Free Daily Headlines :

  • COVID-19
  • Vaccine Info
  • Money
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Health
  • Justice
  • More
    • Environment
    • Economic Development
    • Gaming
    • Investigations
    • Social Services
    • TRANSPORTATION
  • Opinion
    • CT Viewpoints
    • CT Artpoints
DONATE
Reflecting Connecticut’s Reality.
    COVID-19
    Vaccine Info
    Money
    Politics
    Education
    Health
    Justice
    More
    Environment
    Economic Development
    Gaming
    Investigations
    Social Services
    TRANSPORTATION
    Opinion
    CT Viewpoints
    CT Artpoints

LET�S GET SOCIAL

Show your love for great stories and out standing journalism
CT VIEWPOINTS -- opinions from around Connecticut

Paying for Malloy’s $100 billion wish list

  • CT Viewpoints
  • by Jim Cameron
  • May 29, 2015
  • View as "Clean Read" "Exit Clean Read"

There is no question that Gov. Dannel Malloy’s proposed $100 billion transportation plan for our state is, as he puts it, “bold.” The question is, is it achievable?

When asked which projects are important and should be prioritized, he insists it’s “all of them.”

Really?

Is turning little Oxford Airport into an international terminal, just 58 miles from Bradley, as important as fixing Metro-North?  Can we really spend $780 million on bike and pedestrian thoroughfares when we don’t have money to repair crucial bridges on the New Haven line?  And is spending $1.6 billion to widen I-95 from Stamford to the New York state line even necessary?

The problem is, the governor’s plan isn’t a plan.  It’s a wish list, with something for everyone in the state.  His “plan” is of unknown origin.  Nobody has vetted these projects to say what makes sense and what doesn’t.  Nor has the governor offered any ideas on how to pay for them. Instead he’s created a panel of experts tasked with coming up with those answers by the end of this summer, an unenviable job indeed.

As my Daddy taught me, “there is no free lunch.”  And there is no way to pay for any of these projects without significant pain.  A $100 billion plan would cost each man, woman and child in this state $27,800.  Even spread over 50 years, that’s $556 per person per year.  Are you in?

Even the governor admits that highway tolls wouldn’t be enough, covering only one-third of the total cost.  And we know how popular tolling is.

So where else do we get the money?

Among the alternatives… a sales tax increase, higher gas taxes and real estate transfer fees.  Anything on that list to your liking so far?

How about “privatization,” in effect selling off state-owned roads and bridges to private companies, allowing them to charge whatever they’d like to use them?

Is it just by chance that this alternative is being floated by former Malloy campaign manager and top aide Roy Occhiogrosso who just happens to now be working for a firm, HNTB Corp.,  that specializes in such deals?  What does Mr. Occhiogrosso know about the governor’s plans that we don’t, but should?

Privatization has been tried before.  In 2006 cash-strapped Indiana sold its 50-year-old East West Toll Road (“The Main Street of the Midwest”) to an Australian–Spanish conglomerate, netting the state $3.8 billion in return for the right to operate the crucial highway for 75 years. (PS:  Goldman Sachs earned a reported $200 million just for brokering the deal.)   In the first year of operations, tolls almost doubled.

Surprised?

Let’s face it:  Gov. Malloy is very shrewd.  He gets to look like Santa Claus, dolling out transportation goodies across the state while being able to blame his financing strategy team for assigning the costs.

This entire debate warrants very close scrutiny because, whatever its outcome, we will all be paying for it for many years.

Sign up for CT Mirror's free daily news summary.

Free to Read. Not Free to Produce.

The Connecticut Mirror is a nonprofit newsroom. 90% of our revenue comes from people like you. If you value our reporting please consider making a donation. You'll enjoy reading CT Mirror even more knowing you helped make it happen.

YES, I'LL DONATE TODAY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

SEE WHAT READERS SAID

RELATED STORIES
Playing politics with people’s healthcare is always wrong
by Jody Barr, Jan Hochadel, Jeff Leake, Dave Glidden, Carl Chism and Mike Holmes

For the past decade, towns, school boards and cities throughout the state have been able to provide their employees high-quality healthcare through the Connecticut Partnership […]

A pandemic lesson for CSCU leaders: affordable, accessible childcare is critical
by Brandy Sellitto

If there can be anything good that has come from the last year and the horrors of living through this pandemic, perhaps it is the renewed focus on the need for affordable and accessible childcare. As a teen mom, I know first-hand the need for access to safe, reliable, and developmentally appropriate childcare at an affordable price.

Children’s mental health needs continue to soar: The second pandemic lawmakers must address
by Gabriella Izzo

“She was my happy kid,” a parent told me when I cared for her child who was experiencing a mental health crisis. My patient recovered medically within a few days, however, she remained in the hospital for over a week waiting for placement at a psychiatric rehabilitation facility. We must improve our mental health system and you can be a critical part of making that happen.

H.B. 6620 — A closer reading of a flawed legislative proposal
by Ann M Mulready

The Connecticut Association for Reading Research (CARR) is deeply concerned regarding H.B. 6620, An Act Concerning the Right to Read and Addressing Certain Opportunity Gaps. It is based on a concept that is seriously problematic in that it subordinates comprehension to fluency.

One step Connecticut can take to address our maternal mortality crisis
by Myechia Minter-Jordan, MD

Uncertainty. Fear. Worry. These are just a few of the thoughts and emotions that run through the minds of almost every expecting parent. And for many expecting Black parents, those feelings can be more acute. That’s because for far too many, having a child is a life and death struggle.

Support Our Work

Show your love for great stories and outstanding journalism.

$
Select One
  • Monthly
  • Yearly
  • Once
Artpoint painter
CT ViewpointsCT Artpoints
Opinion Playing politics with people’s healthcare is always wrong
by Jody Barr, Jan Hochadel, Jeff Leake, Dave Glidden, Carl Chism and Mike Holmes

For the past decade, towns, school boards and cities throughout the state have been able to provide their employees high-quality healthcare through the Connecticut Partnership […]

Opinion A pandemic lesson for CSCU leaders: affordable, accessible childcare is critical
by Brandy Sellitto

If there can be anything good that has come from the last year and the horrors of living through this pandemic, perhaps it is the renewed focus on the need for affordable and accessible childcare. As a teen mom, I know first-hand the need for access to safe, reliable, and developmentally appropriate childcare at an affordable price.

Opinion Children’s mental health needs continue to soar: The second pandemic lawmakers must address
by Gabriella Izzo

“She was my happy kid,” a parent told me when I cared for her child who was experiencing a mental health crisis. My patient recovered medically within a few days, however, she remained in the hospital for over a week waiting for placement at a psychiatric rehabilitation facility. We must improve our mental health system and you can be a critical part of making that happen.

Opinion H.B. 6620 — A closer reading of a flawed legislative proposal
by Ann M Mulready

The Connecticut Association for Reading Research (CARR) is deeply concerned regarding H.B. 6620, An Act Concerning the Right to Read and Addressing Certain Opportunity Gaps. It is based on a concept that is seriously problematic in that it subordinates comprehension to fluency.

Artwork Grand guidance
by Anne:Gogh

In a world of systemic oppression aimed towards those of darker skintones – representation matters. We are more than our equity elusive environments, more than […]

Artwork Shea
by Anthony Valentine

Shea is a story about race and social inequalities that plague America. It is a narrative that prompts the question, “Do you know what it’s […]

Artwork The Declaration of Human Rights
by Andres Chaparro

Through my artwork I strive to create an example of ideas that reflect my desire to raise social consciousness, and cultural awareness. Jazz music is […]

Artwork ‘A thing of beauty. Destroy it forever’
by Richard DiCarlo | Derby

During times like these it’s often fun to revisit something familiar and approach things with a different slant. I have been taking some Pop culture […]

Twitter Feed
A Twitter List by CTMirror

Engage

  • Reflections Tickets & Sponsorships
  • Events
  • Donate
  • Newsletter Sign-Up
  • Submit to Viewpoints
  • Submit to ArtPoints
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Commenting Guidelines
  • Legal Notices
  • Contact Us

About

  • About CT Mirror
  • Announcements
  • Board
  • Staff
  • Sponsors and Funders
  • Donors
  • Friends of CT Mirror
  • History
  • Financial
  • Policies
  • Strategic Plan

Opportunity

  • Advertising and Sponsorship
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Use of Photography
  • Work for Us

Go Deeper

  • Steady Habits Podcast
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Five Things

The Connecticut News Project, Inc. 1049 Asylum Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105. Phone: 860-218-6380

© Copyright 2021, The Connecticut News Project. All Rights Reserved. Website by Web Publisher PRO