L.C. 10.13 - High Speed Highways Act - Vetoed - Override Failed

[AGA]

90 seems too fast. Four lanes in urban areas also seems dangerous.

[AGA]

An amendment:

High Speed Highways Act

An act to facilitate travel between population centers


1. For the purposes of this act, a High Speed Highway (HSH) shall be defined as any highway that has one or more lanes permitted to drive at speeds up to 980 miles per hour

2. Express lanes shall be built on the following highways to convert them to High Speed Highways

a. Interstate 95 from Foxborough, MA to Andalusia, PA

b. Interstate 80 from Elmwood Park, NJ to Gary, IN

c. Interstate 71 from Montgomery, OH to Strongsville, OH

d. Interstate 76 from King of Prussia, PA to Harmar Township, PA

3. All of the above highways shall have at least two lanes of express lanes at HSH standards, but may have as many as four in more urban areas

4. Local authorities may at any point choose to lower the speed limit, if it is required for safety reasons

5. Cost for this project shall be determined at a later date per estimates

6. Funding methods for this project shall be determined at a later date

7. This act will begin to be implemented two years after passage by the Council

[AGA]

IIRC the 85 mph speed limit in Texas is the highest in the country, and outside Texas, the highest is 80. There doesn't seem to be a reason to go above 80, especially since most people speed anyway.

[AGA]

IIRC the 85 mph speed limit in Texas is the highest in the country, and outside Texas, the highest is 80. There doesn't seem to be a reason to go above 80, especially since most people speed anyway.

Would you be open to 85 as a compromise? I'm totally fine with 80 though, if it's what is needed for this to pass as it's an improvement over the status quo.

I suppose that's fine, but my other concern is the minimum of two express lanes since some sections of the highways listed are only two lanes wide (unless the bill is counting express lanes in both directions together).

[AGA]

IIRC the 85 mph speed limit in Texas is the highest in the country, and outside Texas, the highest is 80. There doesn't seem to be a reason to go above 80, especially since most people speed anyway.

Would you be open to 85 as a compromise? I'm totally fine with 80 though, if it's what is needed for this to pass as it's an improvement over the status quo.

I suppose that's fine, but my other concern is the minimum of two express lanes since some sections of the highways listed are only two lanes wide (unless the bill is counting express lanes in both directions together).

The express lanes would be in addition to lanes that are already present.

Hmm, then I would have to see cost and timing estimates before supporting this.

[AGA]

Carbon emissions is not the concern of regional governments, in my view.

[AGA]

How do you define an area with a population density of over 2000 people per square mile?

[AGA]

I don't think building new lanes is worth the cost. I'd prefer that we just raise some speed limits.

[AGA]

Toll price seems too expensive.

[AGA]

This amendment does two things. I did not like how the number of HSH lanes to be created did not take into account the number of lanes the highway has but instead the population density of the county (without units!), which seems like an odd metric to use. I still included a provision to limit HSH lanes in very densely populated areas. I also cut the toll price in half. I don't think we should be building any new lanes.

High Speed Highways Act

An act to facilitate travel between population centers


1. For the purposes of this act, a High Speed Highway (HSH) shall be defined as any highway that has one or more lanes permitted to drive at speeds up to 80 miles per hour

2. Express lanes shall be built on the following highways to convert them to High Speed Highways

a. Interstate 95 from Foxborough, MA to Andalusia, PA

b. Interstate 80 from Elmwood Park, NJ to Gary, IN

c. Interstate 71 from Montgomery, OH to Strongsville, OH

d. Interstate 76 from King of Prussia, PA to Harmar Township, PA

e. Any other interstate, or section thereof, in a County with an average population density of less than 200 people.

3. All of the above highways shall have at least one express lane at HSH standards

4. Local authorities may at any point choose to lower the speed limit, if it is required for safety reasons

5. This project shall cost $28,468,000,000

6. Funding shall be via existing unobligated government funds.

7. Existing lanes shall be converted into HSH lanes.

A. For highways with two or fewer lanes in each direction, no lanes shall be converted to HSH lanes.

B. For highways with three lanes in each direction, one lane shall be converted to a HSH lane.

C. For highways with four or more lanes in each direction, two lanes shall be converted to HSH lane.

D. In counties with a population density of at least 2500 people per square mile, no HSH lanes shall be created.

7.If at all possible, existing lanes shall be converted to HSH standards. However, if absolutely necessary, new lanes may be built such that existing buildings will not be demolished. Construction/Conversion shall be according to the following formula:

A. In Counties with an average population density of 400 people or more, three HSH lanes shall exist. At least two non-HSH lanes shall also exist.

B. In Counties with an average population density of 201-399 people, two HSH lanes shall exist. At least one non-HSH lane shall also exist.

C. In Counties with an average population density of 200 people or less, one HSH lane shall exist. At least one non-HSH lane shall also exist.

8. Tolling

A. Tolls shall be collected on HSH lanes built on the roads referenced in sections a. through d.

B. The method of tolling shall be by open road tolling. Electronic toll collection sensors, also known as gantries shall be installed at locations mentioned in section E on the aforementioned highways.

C. The method of payment for the tolls shall be via the E-ZPass transponder or toll by plate. Rates shall be the same regardless of payment method

D. Tolled HSH Lanes will be labeled and marketed as "E-ZPass High Speed Express (EHSE)"

E. Toll gantries shall be installed slightly before the following locations, and in both directions, unless otherwise specified, these shall also be the only locations where one may leave the EHSE lanes either to exit the highway entirely or crossover to the local lanes:

i. On Interstate 95
Southern Terminus of Tolling is in Pennsylvania
a. Exit 35 on I-95 in Pennsylvania (Andalusia/Philadelphia) (northbound gantry only, southern terminus of tolling)
b. Exit 40 on I-276/Pennsylvania Turnpike (Harrisburg/New Jersey)
Entering New Jersey
c. Exit 6 on I-95/NJ Turnpike in New Jersey (Delaware/New York City)
d. Exit 7A on I-95/NJ Turnpike (I-195, Trenton/Shore Points)
e. Exit 10 on I-95/NJ Turnpike (I-287/NJ-440, Perth Amboy/Outerbridge Crossing, Metuchen)
f. Exit 11 on I-95/NJ Turnpike (Garden State Parkway
g. Exit 13 on I-95/NJ Turnpike (I-278, Goethals Bridge)
h. Exit 14 on I-95/NJ Turnpike (I-78, Clinton, Holland Tunnel/New York)
i. Exit 16E on I-95/NJ Turnpike (NJ-495, Lincoln Tunnel/New York)
j. Exit 69 on I-80 (NJ Turnpike, Trenton)
Entering New York
k. Exit 1C-D on I-95 in New York (I-87/New York Thruway, Albany, Triborough Bridge/Queens)
l. Exit 6A on I-95 (I-678 South, Bronx-Whitestone Bridge/Queens)
m. Exit 6B on I-95 (I-295, Throgs Neck Bridge/Queens)
n. Exit 9 on I-95 (Hutchinson River Parkway North)
Entering Connecticut
o. Exit 48 on I-95 in Connecticut (I-91 North, Hartford)
p. Exit 76 on I-95 (I-395 North, Norwich)
Entering Rhode Island
q. Exit 11 on I-95 in Rhode Island (I-295 North, Woonsocket)
r. Exit 19 on I-95 (I-195, Cape Cod)
Entering Massachusetts
s. Exit 4 on I-95 in Massachusetts (I-295 South, Warwick/Woonsocket)
t. Exit 6A-B on I-95 (I-495, Worcester/Cape Cod)
u. Exit 8 on I-95 (Foxborough/Boston) (southbound gantry only, northern terminus of tolling)
Northern Terminus of Tolling is in Massachusetts

(insert exits for other three highways here

F. Tolls shall be collected at a rate of $0.30$0.15 per mile for 2 axle vehicles, rates shall be higher for vehicles with more axles.

G. This tolling proposal will raise approximately $2,849,348,571.43$1,424,674,285.71

8. This act will begin to be implemented two years after passage by the Council

[AGA]

Objection, I frankly don't see the point of installing tolls if the profit is going to be so low, and also I share the President's concerns about demolishing buildings, and we need to prevent that at all costs.

Those toll prices aren't very low.

[AGA]

Aye

[AGA]

What are the units for county population density?

[AGA]

I would like to see every highway to have at least two non-HSH lanes, and I am opposed to building new lanes in general.

[AGA]

There's no point to having both a carbon tax and a cap-and-trade system.

[AGA]

Okay so final estimate for expansions and lane divisions should be $3691.38096 billion, this number was calculated through some painstaking work of finding out where exactly lane expansions would be needed, fortunately they're all in rural areas, and this should be roughly the maximum cost of this bill.

I'm assuming this number is an error?

[AGA]

Nay

[AGA]

Nay