The state government will undertake an 18-month study that will analyze the potential consolidation of certain operations between the state Department of Transportation and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.
The state government will undertake an 18-month study that will analyze the potential consolidation of certain operations between the state Department of Transportation and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.
State Sen. John Rafferty, one of two sponsors of a bill that resulted in the study’s commission, said late last week that the two agencies are both responsible for planning, construction and maintenance of interstate highways across Pennsylvania.
Often times, the agencies perform identical tasks that can result in redundancies in cost and time.
“We have an obligation to the taxpayers to analyze all cost-saving measures, particularly when two overlapping Commonwealth agencies perform similar duties,” Rafferty said.
State Sen. Scott Hutchinson, whose district partially covers Butler County, is the other sponsor of the study and agreed with his colleague by saying legislators need to take a hard look at how the agencies overlap.
“I believe this study will show that there are a lot of redundant costs incurred by the Commission, such as engineering services and maintenance crews, which could be reduced significantly if the Turnpike was operated by PennDOT,” he said. “If things don’t change, those unnecessary costs will continue to be passed on to drivers through ever-increasing tolls.”
In addition, Hutchinson said the Turnpike Commission’s “initial purpose” when created was to oversee the construction of the 552-mile roadway, “and that was accomplished decades ago.”
Those conducting the study will have their work cut out when analyzing overlapping jurisdictions and functions. For instance, the turnpike commission is responsible for 552 miles of road, 150 bridges, 79 interchanges, 27 maintenance facilities and 17 service places.
The commission also has an annual budget of about $360 million, and will have assumed nearly $17 billion in debt by 2022.
In comparison, PennDOT has an annual budget of more than $8 billion – a mix of federal and state funds – and is responsible for nearly 40,000 miles of highway and 25,400 bridges.
Reached Monday for comment, PennDOT spokesman Rich Kirkpatrick said the agency is “always looking at ways we can collaborate and improve efficiencies.”
“We look forward to the legislative report,” he said.
As stipulated in a Senate resolution that passed last week, the state Joint State Government Committee will have 18 months to provide its report to the Senate. That report could include recommendations and legislative proposals for possible consolidating of services.