Pennsylvania court rules against PennDOT bridge tolling plan

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has no authority to implement a toll plan on nine bridges across the state, including Interstate 79, according to a ruling by the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court on June 30.

According to the court, the Public-Private Transportation Partnership Board, “essentially approved a multibillion-dollar transportation project based on what was essentially a four-page PowerPoint recommendation from DOT that failed to delineate which, or how many, pieces of public infrastructure the initiative would affect,” said the court.

This decision came after a lawsuit was filed by South Fayette Township, Bridgeville Borough and Collier Township in November 2021 alleging PennDOT was in violation of Act 88 of 2012.

In November 2020, the P3 Board voted to toll interstate bridges in need of replacement or repair. These tolls were to be used for the repairs, and a private firm would be contracted to complete the work.

However, the bridges affected were not properly listed nor were the affected municipalities properly consulted, according to the lawsuit.

The I-79 Bridge is partially located in South Fayette Township and Bridgeville Borough and borders Collier Township. These petitioners are affected persons under the terms of Act 88, said the court.

“The township and the residents are the real heroes of this story and deserve the credit for stopping this disastrous plan,” Rep. Jason Ortitay, R-Washington/Allegheny, said in a news release.

While the void ab initio ruling permanently blocks the tolling plan, PennDOT has 30 days to appeal the decision to the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.

Previous ruling on the toll plan

An injunction on this issue had been in place since May 18. That ruling ordered PennDOT to stop any work related to the nine-bridge toll plan until the court reached an opinion on the matter. LL

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