As a Westpark toll road user, I ain't happy either. The "let them take Richmond" quote isn't sitting well with me. I never understood why they only built 4 lanes in the first place. http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/4904459.html As Westpark tolls rise, so do tempers Drivers up in arms after officials double the fee at peak hours to ease congestion By BILL MURPHY Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle Harris County Commissioners Court's decision Tuesday to fight congestion on the three-year-old Westpark Tollway by forcing some drivers off the road with higher rush-hour fees drew the ire of cash-strapped commuters. And a dismissive response from Commissioner Steve Radack — "Let them go down Richmond Road" — made the new $2.50 tolls even less palatable for some. Commuter Vic Stewart, in an e-mail, said of the Commissioners Court, "And 'Let them eat cake!' They'll certainly have time." Commissioners Court voted unanimously to hike fees to $2.50 from 6-9 a.m. and 4-7 p.m., hoping fewer drivers will use the tollway. The court, also in a unanimous vote, raised fees by 25 cents on all county toll roads. The increases will go into effect in September. With the toll roads already known among some area residents as "Lexus Lanes," the new prices left some drivers wondering whether the court has forgotten about working people. "There are people who have budgeted a certain amount for tolls and need to use the tollway to get to work by a certain time in the morning," said Carol Ann Shipp. "These are not affluent professionals for whom the doubling of tolls is negligible. These are hardworking middle-class workers who must count every penny." Radack said those who cannot afford the rush-hour fees should use alternate roads. "Let them go down Richmond Road," he said. "Or they can use Westpark," the surface road running alongside the tollway. Six months after the four-lane Westpark Tollway opened in 2004, traffic backups began occurring in certain areas, said Peter Key, toll road authority deputy director. Congestion has worsened since then. More lanes not possible The toll road authority would have preferred building a six- or even eight-lane tollway, Key said. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which owned the land in the area, was willing to sell only enough for a four-lane tollway, he said. Metro wanted to keep the remaining land in case it builds a commuter rail line along the tollway, Key said. Metro paid $80.8 million to buy the rail corridor from Southern Pacific, now Union Pacific Railroad, in 1992. Seven years later, it sold a 13.3-mile strip in the corridor to the toll road authority for $14.3 million. Metro vice president John Sedlak said Metro has considered using the corridor for rail for several decades and may build a light rail line along parts of the corridor, from the Hillcroft Transit Center to an undetermined distance east of the West Loop. County Judge Ed Emmett said the county is following a worldwide trend in imposing "congestion pricing" to guarantee traffic flow. "The justification is that people pay for a tollway they can move on," he said. Key said raising the tollway's rush-hour rates will cause some motorists to use the Southwest Freeway and surface roads — that's what the toll road authority wants to happen. The toll road authority could eventually impose congestive pricing on other parts of the toll road system prone to backups, he added. 'Absolutely ridiculous' But Matt Gelotti, in an e-mail, wrote that the rate hike doesn't make sense to him because it will not improve traffic flow throughout southwest Houston, only on the tollway. "This is absolutely ridiculous," he wrote. "They should have built the road right the first time to handle all of the traffic." Key said the 25-cent increase in all tolls is needed to maintain the toll road authority's good financial standing, pay for maintenance and build six toll segments estimated to cost $4.4 billion. The hikes will in part pay for extending the Hardy Toll Road to downtown and the Sam Houston Tollway into northeast Harris County, turning Hempstead Highway into a toll road, carrying out the second phase of the Fort Bend Parkway, adding toll lanes on Texas 288 and building the Fairmont Parkway. ------------------ • All county tolls: Will rise 25 cents in September. EZ Tag, now $1, will be $1.25. Cash transactions, now $1.25, will rise to $1.50. • Westpark Tollway: Now $1, will rise to $1.25 at non-peak hours, $2.50 at peak hours of 6-9 a.m. inbound and 4-7 p.m. outbound. • Down the road: Toll rates will double over the next 20 years. Rates will go up annually by 2 percent or at the rate of the rise in the consumer price index, whichever is greater.
Good thing I hardly ever use toll roads. Anyways, I don't know much about that tollway but if traffic gets as bad as the article claim during peak hours, then wouldn't it be in the best interest of the commuters to find an alternative route anyways (that's free)??
I'd bet that the rate rise will not make congestion on Westpark any better, who the hell are the tollroad people kidding here??
When are they planning to add toll lanes to Hwy 288, 2025? That idea has to be near the bottom of the totem pole. When the Fort Bend Tollway is extended to 610, revenue-wise it will become Ft. Knox. They need to make that one a priority.
If anyone ever needed confirmation that Steve Radack is a freaking idiot, now you have it. I hope people remember this next time he runs for office.
I refuse to go on toll roads. I can't justify paying the State a damn dime when taxes pay for roads in the first place. Whoever came up with toll roads is a moron. I'd like to see a boycott. And not for a day. More like a year, or even indefinitely. If you don't use them, the tolls will go down, or outright disappear. It's the law of supply and demand.
I don't use the Westpark, but I use the Hardy all the time. I think it's worth the toll when you compare it do driving on I-45. And the more people who boycott it, the less traffic for me. I do think they should have designed the Westpark better. Don't you have to get off and sit at a light before you can get on the Beltway? That's what's causing all the traffic. Horrible lack of foresight.
you do now, but i don't think it will always be that way. from someone who lives on the west side of town, the westpark tollway is great. seriously.
The Beltway is a nightmare on many days that I've been in Houston. Plus the road needs major work in many areas. Why aren't those areas getting fixed from the tolls?
So why are there constant price hikes? Supply and demand. Don't use them, and the fee will come down, period.
I thought the Idea of the Tollway was to EASE congestion on Westpak and Richmond so now I'm being told .. if there is congestion on the Tollway then I should take Westpark or Richmond??? What a waste of money . .or rather a collosal Money grab Rocket River
Are they really planning on extending the FB tollway to 610? Can't you already just take 90 (which is very nice now except for light instead of ramp at 610) to go from one to the other?
apparently, the idea is to lesson the congestion on the tollway by making it more expensive. In turn, less people use the toll freeing up space on the road. i can imagine a toll 0f 1.25, but 2.50 is expensive, especially with the amount of tolls westpark already has
because they aren't taxes being used. if there were taxes being used, they wouldn't need to raise the prices. i'm guessing you'd be complaining if your taxes went up to build these roads. we're going to pay for it, one way or another...as with all public projects. the only question is how.
Didn't they just have a toll hike like a yr ago? I didn't see any improvements. These toll roads are really getting ridiculous.
Great, this news comes down the day before I'm moving out to Katy and was planning on using the Westpark for my afternoon commute. Not sure what to do now.
