Representative Mark Falzone, in a letter written to the Massachusetts Secretary of Transportation, spoke out against the addition of new toll plazas on I-93 along the Massachusetts and New Hampshire border. This strongly worded letter, signed by 18 Massachusetts Legislators, discussed the economic and public safety consequences of installing new tolls, which include burdening commuters and tourists with the new payment and the likelihood that many cars would divert to Routes 1, 3, 495, or other local roadways in an attempt to avoid paying any additional toll.

The letter to Massachusetts Secretary of Transportation Jeffrey Mullan was initiated and signed by Massachusetts State Legislators very strongly opposed to new tolls. In the words of these legislators, “…these new toll plazas…[are] nothing more than an attempt by the state of New Hampshire to shift the burden of paying for its infrastructure improvements onto the backs of Massachusetts residents.”

Representative Falzone emphasized, “The construction of proposed toll plazas would be an unfair imposition on the people of Massachusetts which would harm jobs in our state. The projected location of the plazas, on I-93 between New Hampshire and Boston, takes unfair advantage of a route that is well-known to be frequently traveled by many commuters. As a member of the Committee on Tourism, Arts, and Cultural Development, I am also particularly concerned about the impact these tolls would have on out-of-state tourists’ decisions to visit Massachusetts. It is not the responsibility of Massachusetts taxpayers to finance New Hampshire’s infrastructure improvements, and especially not at the expense of Massachusetts employment.”

This is an important and well-supported stand against the application by the State of New Hampshire for permission from the Federal Highway Administration to add new toll plazas along 1-93. The decision by the Federal Highway Administration, whether or not to move forward with the construction of these economically harmful tolls, has yet to be determined.