The turnpike system and the money grabbers In the state

[SoonerP226]

Left seat passengers? Long time sense I drove a truck, I do not understand.

Drive the Turner Turnpike and you'll understand. Truckers used to be professionals, but the trucking companies are so hard up for drivers these days that they'll apparently hire any warm body to fill a seat. They do just as much dumb sh*t as the drivers who aren't pushing 40 tons, and they seem to love driving I-44.

You get a much better class of trucker on I-40, IMHO.

 

[Raido Free America]

So now they’ve closed off the exits ability to pay in favor of the license plate reader system.

The cost has soared from 1.15 to $2.05 to go 8 miles on the shitcreek turnpike.

Every car needs a pike pass now or you pay for it.

We went from machines that couldn’t counted money correctly 1 out of 4 times and no debit/credit card readers to this.

Screw the pike pass I’m not giving state a loan on my 2 cars. I used the system to go from Claremore to BA maybe 6 times a year.

Now it’s zero due to cost. Now it cost me a check and a .63 cent stamp as well

You think they would have upgraded the machines to a coke machine standardsView attachment 398776

There are two sides to every argument, and I can see how having to pay tolls can be agrivating. On the other hand, roads, bridges, etc. cost the same no matter who payes to have them built. federal, state, county, and city roads are built, and mantained, with tax payer money, even tax payers that drive very little, or not at all! Turnpikes are built with private money, from bond sales, and only the people that pay for it are the people that use it!! That seems more fair, to me? Just my opinion!!

 

[Dorkus]

There are two sides to every argument, and I can see how having to pay tolls can be agrivating. On the other hand, roads, bridges, etc. cost the same no matter who payes to have them built. federal, state, county, and city roads are built, and mantained, with tax payer money, even tax payers that drive very little, or not at all! Turnpikes are built with private money, from bond sales, and only the people that pay for it are the people that use it!! That seems more fair, to me? Just my opinion!!

I agree, user pays. The argument could be; I live in Poteau, why should my tax dollars fund roads in Guyman?

I see both sides and prefer the turnpike system over no roads or a bunch of two lanes everywhere. If you don’t, don’t get on them. It’s pretty simple.

 

[-Pjackso]

There are two sides to every argument...
Turnpikes are built with private money, from bond sales, and only the people that pay for it are the people that use it!! That seems more fair, to me?

I concur. There are times where turnpike (private bonds) are helpful to fund large projects. And only the people that "use" the turnpike are the ones that pays for it.

...Although...

The rub is 2-fold:
1) The turnpike bonds curiously never gets paid off, so the "investors" continue to profit. Almost as if the investors (and OTA) are motivated to to ensure the 'debt' is never fully resolved.
2) If the (OTA and investors) have a cozy relationship (read: more easy money) to build more turnpikes - then by association, the investors are using state powers (eminent domain, legislation, police force, etc) to force people out to further the investors profits.
...you know, ...for NEW roads, ...where there is already existing roads. Except not as nice, and not as profitable.

Private corporate money tends to 'sway' politicians for short-term "easy" money.
Corporate investments are for-profit - which drains state revenue. But how long, ...for impertuity?

Do we really want to hand over the state enforcement powers and revenues over to say... Blackrock?
We should name the Turnpike(s) by who mostly funded it.

 

[AKguy1985]

I have a pike pass in every one of my vehicles. I use it avoid verdigris and catoosa speed traps on hwy 66. I'm not contributing to their revenue stream.

 

[BobbyV]

I took one of the "fast" lanes down in Tejas a few months ago - they'll mail you the bill.

Oddly enough I never got a bill.


You think having the tailgate down and a couple kayaks protruding might have kept them from reading my plate?

One year we did that and it too like 6 months or longer to get the bill.

 

[BobbyV]

I avoid toll roads. I'm not in that big of a hurry. I'll leave earlier to get there if I need to.

Being able to go faster is a bonus in most cases, but the ability to avoid common interstate chokepoints is even better.

 

[BobbyV]

Drive the Turner Turnpike and you'll understand. Truckers used to be professionals, but the trucking companies are so hard up for drivers these days that they'll apparently hire any warm body to fill a seat. They do just as much dumb sh*t as the drivers who aren't pushing 40 tons, and they seem to love driving I-44.

You get a much better class of trucker on I-40, IMHO.

I've definitely noticed truckers moving over to pass, then turning their blinker on and just ignoring cars in the left lane on 44, but they're pretty bad about doing that on parts of 40 too. It's even better when they do it going up hill.

 

[Beau]

I hate that we have to pay a "toll". We're taxed to death already. I always smile and wave real big for the camera going through . The system needs to be audited, or burned to the ground.

 

[Rustytweezers]

I've been told that out of state investors own our turnpikes.
Fact to fiction?

I had heard that same story. And very little of the income goes to Oklahoma. Very little