Oklahoma Turnpike Authority

[Snowman]

I noticed the pricing information on signage just before the old toll booth at Western. If you went the entire length of the Kilpatrick in a standard vehicle, Pikepass would $3.20, Platepay would be $6.65.

The long term plan I am guessing is to get as many people on PikePass as possible since it much more automatic than mailing someone a physical bill. While initially cheaper, I imagine OTA has data somewhere that shows that current PikePass holders use the turnpike system more frequently than non-PikePass holders. (especially in the metro areas) Most probably don't even think about it if they have their PikePass account auto drafted.

One of the other nice things about PikePass is the interoperability between the North Texas Tollways, TX Tag, and Kansas Turnpike. There are times we use our PikePass more in DFW in a month than in Oklahoma.

It seem like they generally have quoted PikePass users as around 90% of turnpike traffic, but it would not be a surprise if the long routes and the suburban routes had noticeably different numbers.

[Laramie]

Understand the various arguments about toll roads. Our sister city of Tulsa is encircled by toll roads: https://tulsaworld.com/opinion/lette...cd96dc08c.html

Sure the toll roads make money and secure future funds for expansion, upgrades & maintenance.

When visiting the Tulsa area in the mid 90s, had to get enough cash and coins to cover a litany of tolls. Do you realize how many toll roads connect to the Tulsa metropolitan area...

Tulsa is Oklahoma's second largest city with a lot of potential being on an inland canal waterway.

Let's give Tulsa a break and eliminate at least two those toll roads; eliminate the toll on the H. E. Bailey Turnpike to Oklahoma City.

1 Oklahoma turnpikes: https://tollguru.com/toll-wiki/oklah...ike-toll-roads

1.1 Cherokee Turnpike
1.2 Chickasaw Turnpike
1.3 Cimarron Turnpike
1.4 H.E. Bailey Turnpike
1.5 Indian Nation Turnpike
1.6 John Kilpatrick Turnpike
1.7 Muskogee Turnpike
1.8 Turner Turnpike
1.9 Creek Turnpike
1.10 Will Rogers Turnpike
1.11 Kickapoo Turnpike

[Plutonic Panda]

Eliminate all of the toll roads.

[catch22]

ODOT doesn’t have the funding to keep up with current infrastructure needs, and you want to dump hundreds or even thousands of additional lane miles in their lap?

[MagzOK]

ODOT doesn’t have the funding to keep up with current infrastructure needs, and you want to dump hundreds or even thousands of additional lane miles in their lap?

No way! I gladly pay tolls all the time for a very smooth and nice ride. Of course if ODOT had correct and effective funding I'd like to not have the tolls, but the way the state is now I'm thankful for generally pothole-free and overall better facilities. I frequently use the Kilpatrick and Turner and am very pleased with them. Frequent trips to Dallas on I-35 remind me why I enjoy paying the tolls.

[Plutonic Panda]

Yes.

[Plutonic Panda]

Well I never said they shouldn’t have their funding increased. Somehow, just somehow states like California, Utah, Arizona, Texas, etc manage to build tons of higher quality roads with little to no tolls. Oklahoma can do the same. Get rid of the tolls.

[MagzOK]

Well I never said they shouldn’t have their funding increased. Somehow, just somehow states like California, Utah, Arizona, Texas, etc manage to build tons of higher quality roads with little to no tolls. Oklahoma can do the same. Get rid of the tolls.

It may have something to do with population and tax dollars, not sure. OK can't compete with Texas in terms of funding. Texas highways are incredible, and I'm including their FM highways also. Actually, their FM highways generally are better than most of our federally marked highways! The way the funding is set up now, there's now way that ODOT can keep up the maintenance on the pikes as they can't keep up with what they have now. I know there are a lot of folks that absolutely loathe them, but IMO turnpikes are better facilities.

[Bunty]

Well I never said they shouldn’t have their funding increased. Somehow, just somehow states like California, Utah, Arizona, Texas, etc manage to build tons of higher quality roads with little to no tolls. Oklahoma can do the same. Get rid of the tolls.

Years ago, Oklahoma voters nixed a proposal to raise gas tax for better roads. Other states, like California have better highways, because the people there are willing to pay higher taxes for them. Ironic how a few years ago, Oklahoma raised gas tax by 3 cents not to fix the roads, but rather to pay teachers more. But it shows to me how many Oklahomans, including state legislators, aren't all that unhappy with the state highway system.

[jn1780]

Years ago, Oklahoma voters nixed a proposal to raise gas tax for better roads. Other states, like California have better highways, because the people there are willing to pay higher taxes for them. Ironic how a few years ago, Oklahoma raised gas tax by 3 cents not to fix the roads, but rather to pay teachers more. But it shows to me how many Oklahomans, including state legislators, aren't all that unhappy with the state highway system.

A gas tax would be a regression tax on the poor and a lot of them don't care about a interstate/road that is in the middle of the nowhere or only really useful to people who live in higher income areas. Plus, if we continue to move towards electric vehicles, we will eventually need to replace it with something else.

The Kilpatrick being made into an interstate would make sense along with some of the Tulsa toll roads. The other toll roads makes sense to stay tolls though.

[bombermwc]

A gas tax would be a regression tax on the poor and a lot of them don't care about a interstate/road that is in the middle of the nowhere or only really useful to people who live in higher income areas. Plus, if we continue to move towards electric vehicles, we will eventually need to replace it with something else.

The Kilpatrick being made into an interstate would make sense along with some of the Tulsa toll roads. The other toll roads makes sense to stay tolls though.

How is a use tax a regression tax? If you're paying for each gallon you buy, then the more you drive, the more you use the roads, the more you pay. There can/should be a split of the tax between city/state to cover your point of if they don't drive on the highway. But the reverse of that could also be true in that not everyone has kids in school, but we all pay for it because its all for the betterment of everyone. More people paying in, means the cost is less......widen the base, lower the rate.

I signed up for a PikePass a few weeks ago but still haven't received it in the mail. Anyone know how long they're taking to ship right now?

[HOT ROD]

A gas tax would be a regression tax on the poor and a lot of them don't care about a interstate/road that is in the middle of the nowhere or only really useful to people who live in higher income areas. Plus, if we continue to move towards electric vehicles, we will eventually need to replace it with something else.

The Kilpatrick being made into an interstate would make sense along with some of the Tulsa toll roads. The other toll roads makes sense to stay tolls though.

Can you please explain the bold? How is an increase to the gas tax regressive on the poor, particularly when the poor are the most likely to use public transit and therefore not even pay a gas tax at all?

I'm just wondering why this argument is always thrown around by those who don't want to increase the already far lowest gas tax in the region, if not country. ... We could increase the gas tax significantly and it would STILL be the lowest in the region yet would help cover transit and rail programs. Just seems like people like to throw around the "poor this" or "that" to try to justify their case when at least in the case of gas tax, it's actually fairly mutually exclusive.

I do agree, however, with those who state that grocery tax is regressive on the poor yet this still exists in Oklahoma and NOBODY is making an active effort to change this very much regressive, very much impact to the poor. ...

[Plutonic Panda]

Because they’re properly funded. If we did the same other facilities would be just as good.

[Richard at Remax]

I'm pretty sure almost all of the new highways I've seen built in Dallas the past decade have some sort of toll running down the middle. I do not support getting rid of toll roads.

[Plutonic Panda]

Toll lanes are completely different than having direct interstate connections between cities being tolled.

[khook]

You Are Here NTTA > Roads & Projects > Existing Roadways
overpassesday.jpg

The NTTA is a crucial component of the transportation system in North Texas, operating more than 1,089 toll miles in the region including the Dallas North Tollway, President George Bush Turnpike, Chisholm Trail Parkway, Addison Airport Toll Tunnel, Mountain Creek Lake Bridge, Sam Rayburn Tollway, Lewisville Lake Toll Bridge and 360 Tollway. All of these roadways serve as key connectors for people throughout the region.

Texas Hi Ways are not what they use to be..... Texas is building tons of Toll Roads for the same reason as Oklahoma. The funding is not what it use to be...

[Plutonic Panda]

Texas has actually been building very little toll roads lately and has become very anti toll making planned toll roads actually non-tolled facilities. Anyone who keeps up with the slightest of Highway building news in Texas would know this.

What major cities across Texas are connected by toll roads? I’ll give you a hint: none. The only toll roads exists in certain segments in DFW, Austin, and Houston. SA has a massive toll free network. Not one interstate connecting cities in Texas is tolled. Virtually every new freeway project/expansion in the last several years has been toll free with few exceptions.

Texas funds it’s roads above and beyond what Oklahoma even comes close to. There are plenty of expansions of the freeway/interstate system in Oklahoma that are justified and can’t be built at all or won’t without toll that would be built without tolls in Texas, Utah, Arizona, etc. because they properly fund their roads.

[mugofbeer]

Texas has gone into deep debt since about 2003 to fund highway construction. Right now, their debt is around $23 billion. Some of these roadways have toll lanes to help pay the debt but in essence, Texas sold bonds to build a lot of mostly free roads. Their toll road binge has mostly stopped for the time being.

[Plutonic Panda]

Well another day another new proposed freeway in Arizona that won’t be tolled.

https://azdot.gov/adot-news/adot-sel...e-pinal-county

lol but Oklahoma with some of the fastest growing cities can’t build anything without tolls.

[catch22]

Arizona GDP: 320 billion
Oklahoma GDP: 185 billion

Arizona Population: 7.8 million
Oklahoma Population: 4.0 million

Why do you think they can afford to build more? We have half the population and half the economic production. OK’s roads are proportional to that fact.

[Plutonic Panda]

Right so that must mean Oklahoma can’t even build any road at all for free because Arizona was never Oklahoma’s size with non tolled freeways facilities. That’s it. There’s no way to do it even though I’ve provided numerous examples. Every state like Arizona and Utah just hit some magic number in their population where all of their toll roads were removed.

[BoulderSooner]

Right so that must mean Oklahoma can’t even build any road at all for free because Arizona was never Oklahoma’s size with non tolled freeways facilities. That’s it. There’s no way to do it even though I’ve provided numerous examples. Every state like Arizona and Utah just hit some magic number in their population where all of their toll roads were removed.

Arizona has 1,168.64 "free" miles of interstate

Oklahoma has 930.16 "free" miles of interstate ...

so again what are you talking about ..

[Plutonic Panda]

Arizona has 1,168.64 "free" miles of interstate

Oklahoma has 930.16 "free" miles of interstate ...

so again what are you talking about ..

How many miles of toll roads does Arizona have in a state with a population double that of Oklahoma’s.

Also, you’re referring to only interstates. Though I am against intestate tolling in general, Arizona has tons of state highways that are freeways. You’re also leaving out lane miles with is awfully convenient given many of Arizona’s urban freeways are wider than those in Oklahoma.

[BoulderSooner]

How many miles of toll roads does Arizona have in a state with a population double that of Oklahoma’s.

Also, you’re referring to only interstates. Though I am against intestate tolling in general, Arizona has tons of state highways that are freeways. You’re also leaving out lane miles with is awfully convenient given many of Arizona’s urban freeways are wider than those in Oklahoma.

arizona has 0 toll roads ..

[Plutonic Panda]

arizona has 0 toll roads ..

That’s exactly my point.