Tolling State Route 520 and I-90 together would benefit both highways, even though most of the money would go toward a new Evergreen Point Bridge.
That’s one conclusion reached by the 520 Tolling Implementation Committee, which brought its public-discussion tour to Bellevue City Hall on Nov. 12.
The group is studying nine potential tolling scenarios, and will make a recommendation to the Legislature in January.
Among the options under consideration is a variable fee aimed at discouraging trips during peak hours.
Applying such a toll to 520 and I-90 would theoretically reduce congestion on both highways by distributing traffic more evenly throughout the day, according to the 520 committee.
Potential tolling rates range from $2.15 to $4.25 for the morning commute, and $2.80 to $5.35 during the afternoon rush.
After-peak fees fluctuate between $1.00 and $2.75, with overnight and weekend tolling between zero and $1.60.
How much the charges will amount to depends on when and with what bridges the tolling takes place.
Four of the committee’s nine options would charge fees at both bridges, and five of the alternatives call for tolling to begin in 2010 – before the Evergreen Point Bridge is complete.
The other scenarios postpone tolling until 2016.
The committee has determined that beginning collection in 2010 will raise more funds and reduce the cost of borrowing compared to starting in 2016.
State lawmakers will ultimately decide how to implement tolling.
At least one legislator, Rep. Ross Hunter of the 48th District, was on hand during the Nov. 12 public meeting. He suggested it would be important to get the matter right once and for all during the next legislative session.
“Setting tolls is painful,” Hunter said. “It’s unlikely we’ll want to do it twice.”
The cost of replacing the Evergreen Point Bridge with a new six-lane structure is estimated between $3.7 billion and $3.9 billion.
The state is counting on $2 billion in federal funds and gas-tax revenue, while legislators have decided that the remaining $1.5 to $2 billion will come from tolling.
Only one scenario for charging fees on 520 alone would meet the funding target, while all options for tolling both bridges exceed that range.
The committee has determined that tolling would divert some traffic to other roadways, setting up a need for mediation in those areas.
People are likely to take transit, travel during non-peak hours, or change their destination as well, the committee says.
It is not yet decided whether mass-transit vehicles would have to pay tolls, which could cause their rates to rise.
Some audience members at the public meeting outright opposed the idea of paying fees.
“It just astounds me that we are in this situation where we need to toll ourselves for a new bridge,” said one woman who addressed the committee. “I’m against it.”
Others, like 80-year-old Inge Theisen, were concerned about whether they would be able to afford it.
Thiesen travels three times a week from Kirkland to Seattle for visits with her orthopedic doctors.
“I approve of the concept of tolling, but I don’t know how I would manage if I had to pay a high amount of money,” she said. “They should base the fees on income and age.”
The tolling committee’s latest round of public meetings will wrap up with an open house from 3 to 7 p.m., Nov. 17 at the Stroum Jewish Community Center on Mercer Island.
Joshua Adam Hicks can be reached at jhicks@bellevuereporter.com or 425-453-4290.
