Del. 1 tolls to rise; new casino plan on the way

• Weekend tolls on Del. 1 will rise by %241 to provide %2430 million more for paving projects statewide.
• Limited new money means road projects across the state will face delays

Lawmakers and Gov. Jack Markell agreed Thursday on a plan to pay for some road improvements, striking a limited deal to increase weekend tolls on Del. 1 to provide $30 million more for paving projects statewide.

But the compromise, which ended any thoughts of raising the state's gas tax to fund transportation infrastructure, fell far short of Markell's proposal to generate $100 million a year for the next five years. It leaves a gaping hole in Delaware's capital spending program for transportation.

Some legislators also endorsed another bailout for casinos Thursday, proposing $9.9 million a year in aid. The agreement, which came after a day of closed-door meetings, will be offered for a Senate vote Tuesday.

The deal for road money, made public during capital budget negotiations on Thursday, increases weekend tolls along Del. 1 from $2 to $3 and authorizes $20 million next year in new debt. Weekend tolls will rise at the Biddles Corner and Dover toll plazas, though no date is set for the hike.

The agreement replaces a more ambitious effort by Markell to increase Delaware's per-gallon gasoline tax by 10 cents and authorize new debt to fund $100 million in projects annually.

The higher tolls will generate about $10 million annually, far less than Markell asked lawmakers to authorize. His gas tax proposal would have raised $50 million in new money annually, matched by $50 million in new debt. In the deal with lawmakers, Markell agreed to a two-to-one borrowing-to-revenue ratio after hoping earlier in the year to raise a dollar in revenue for every dollar in new debt.

"It's good we're making a step in that direction," Markell said Thursday. "I wish that we had done more."

Under the plan, the state's capital transportation program will fall to roughly $160 million, from $192 million in the current year.

"There is a direct jobs implication there," Markell said, noting that fewer projects likely will lead to fewer construction jobs.

Lawmakers also reauthorized more than $8 million in unspent appropriations to restore proposed cuts to Community Transportation Fund accounts they use to fund hometown road projects. Lawmakers fiercely protect the accounts to fix roads and curry favor in their districts.

"We need more revenue," Transportation Secretary Shailen Bhatt told lawmakers. "You can't solve this problem with borrowing alone."

Bhatt said he was disappointed lawmakers did not support a higher gas tax and said the state's roads plan will suffer. Bhatt said the administration did not seriously consider raising tolls on I-95, even though that would provide more money than Del. 1 tolls, saying the interstate tolls are already at appropriate levels.

"We are known for our toll on the interstate," he said.

With new money dedicated only to paving, Bhatt said road projects across the state will face delays, including a planned widening of a congested stretch of Del. 1 between Tybouts Corner and Del. 273; the relocation of the Newark train station; and the development of a Wilmington Transit hub.

Rep. Quinn Johnson, a Middletown Democrat and co-chair of the capital budget committee, said he was disappointed lawmakers couldn't do more to fund transportation infrastructure projects.

"What we were able to do is a Band-aid," Johnson said. "It doesn't get to the root of the problem. Over the next six months, there are definitely going to be continued talks as to how deal with the situation."

The casino bailout, which follows $8 million given this year, will be offered in an amendment to a Senate bill sponsored by Sen. Brian Bushweller, a Dover Democrat. The original bill set out to provide $9.9 million in the first year and $20.1 million in subsequent years

"We virtually guarantee we are not solving the problem," Bushweller said of the limited relief offered. "It will be necessary to come back immediately to start working on a continued effort to try and reach some long-term solution."

It's unclear where the money will actually come from to fund the bailout. Bushweller and other state officials remained mum about the source.

Contact Jonathan Starkey at (302) 983-6756, on Twitter @jwstarkey or at jstarkey@delawareonline.com.