Grant us wisdom to accept the toll roads we have

It’s been clear for years that many Texans adamantly oppose toll roads.

It’s been equally clear that others, including a lot of people in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, are just focused on getting from Point A to Point B without being stuck in freeway backups, and they’re willing to pay reasonable tolls to make that happen.

Now comes a group that’s so determined to fight toll roads that they want the state to pay off the debt it has incurred in building those we have.

At a hearing Wednesday in Austin, the Senate Transportation Committee got an estimate of how much that would cost: about $36.7 billion.

Like that’s ever gonna happen.

The number is in a final report on the topic from the Texas Department of Transportation.

“The report includes a review of 53 toll roads and 28 financial tolling systems in the state, excluding international bridges,” department Executive Director James Bass told the committee, according to the Texas Tribune.

That includes roads built by private companies under “comprehensive development agreements” authorized by the Legislature.

The private companies build the new roads in exchange for several decades of toll revenues, a much quicker way to get the transportation infrastructure in place than waiting for the state to be able to afford it.

“This toll tsunami is on autopilot and we must declare no more,” Terri Hall, head of Texans for Toll-free Highways, told the committee.

In the 2015 legislative session, lawmakers sent a proposal to voters to dedicate up to $2.5 billion a year in general sales tax proceeds to transportation, plus a portion of motor vehicle sales, use and rental taxes if that revenue ever exceeds a certain threshold.

Voters handily approved the measure in November. So, if revenue holds up (currently, sales tax revenue is declining) and none of that money is spent on sorely needed new road projects or maintenance, the toll road debt could be paid off in about a decade and a half.

We have to wonder whether this discussion isn’t just a political exercise aimed at letting toll road opponents blow off steam and then accept reality.

There will always be more worthy (even needed) transportation projects than funding to make them happen.

It’s not smart, even if it were possible, to freeze the clock, pay off the current toll road debt, and then get back to the serious business of meeting current needs.

So, let’s accept the toll roads we have and spend our money on projects that keep us from needing new ones.

This story was originally published September 15, 2016 at 5:38 PM with the headline "Grant us wisdom to accept the toll roads we have."