A Toll Booth on Bruce B. Downs?

New Tampa Real Estate

Even the other commissioners laughed when Hillsborough County Commissioner Ken Hagan proposed setting up a tollbooth on Bruce B. Downs Boulevard. There’s a good reason for that – the idea is pretty laughable. Hagan made the proposal last week after Pasco County officially refused to help pay for the costs of improving the BBD. Pasco’s reason – they’re not sure if it’s legal for them to spend Pasco Co. impact funds on improvements in Hillsborough County.

Which gives the two counties something in common, because Hillsborough County isn’t sure if it’s legal to put up a toll booth and collect tolls on BBD. The big difference is that Hillsborough County is going to take the time and money to “investigate” the option.

Seriously, how much investigation do you have to do to figure out that it’s crazy to try to collect tolls on a road that’s as main street as BBD? Who do you exempt from paying tolls? If you live on Hillsborough, do you get a little resident sticker so you don’t have to pay a toll to run up the street to the mall in Pasco?

I certainly see Hagan’s point – a great deal of the BBD traffic originates from Pasco County, and improvements to the road would be a benefit to those residents from Pasco. Still, the cost of doing a study and exploring the legal aspects of toll roads seems a waste of both time and money that could be better spent exploring other possible avenues. The general opinion of the man on the street seems to be that toll booths make little sense – but even Pasco County residents think they should help with the cost of improvements to a road that serves both counties. Maybe this is an opportunity for both counties to work on a compromise that will benefit everyone concerned.

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