Majority Leader Chip Rogers and Sen. John Albers Applaud the Removal of GA 400 toll.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Natalie Dale, Director
Shawna Mercer, Sr. Communications Specialist
natalie.dale@senate.ga.gov
404.656.0028

ATLANTA (July 20, 2012) – Sen. Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock) and Sen. John Albers (R-Roswell) applaud Gov. Nathan Deal on upholding his promise to remove the GA 400 Toll. GA 400, the only fixed-rate toll in Georgia , will be removed December 1, 2013.

“I applaud Governor Deal’s exemplary leadership helping remove the Georgia 400 tolls. This fulfills a promise made to Georgians many years ago that the toll would come down when the road was paid for. Unfortunately the Governor had to take action to correct the failure of the Georgia Department of Transportation Board, which voted in 2010 to keep collecting the tolls even after the original bonds had been paid in full. The failure of the DOT board seriously eroded the trust we have in our government. Today, Governor Deal is taking positive steps toward restoring our trust.”

Although meant to be a temporary source of infrastructure revenue, the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) and the State Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA) approved a 10-year extension for the toll that was set to expire in July of 2010.

To address this, Sen. Majority Leader Chip Rogers and Sen. John Albers worked together to hold public forums, champion petitions, and introduce legislation to call for the removal of the GA 400 Toll on behalf of the communities along the GA 400corridor.

In 2011, Sen. John Albers proposed Senate Bill 97 aimed at permanently removing the Georgia 400 toll. If passed, this bill would have prohibited any toll that is no longer paying off debt or interest from collecting a toll from commuters. SRTA is also required to review all operating tolls and create a schedule for paying off any interest as quickly as possible.

“Today, we helped restore faith in our state government to serve the people with integrity,” said Sen. Albers. “I am pleased with the Governor's response to these efforts and his willingness to listen to the transportation concerns of Georgia citizens.”