H. B. 2486
(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegates
McGraw, Pulliam and Thompson)
[Introduced March 11, 1997; referred to the
Committee on Roads and Transportation then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section eighteen, article sixteen-a,
chapter seventeen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to commuter
pass system for the West Virginia Turnpike.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section eighteen, article sixteen-a, chapter seventeen
of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred
thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 16A. WEST VIRGINIA PARKWAYS, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND
TOURISM AUTHORITY.
§17-16A-18. Cessation of tolls; commuter pass system.
(a) Except as provided herein, when all bonds issued under
the provisions of this article in connection with any parkway
project or projects and the interest thereon shall have been paid or a sufficient amount for the payment of all such bonds and the
interest thereon to the maturity thereof shall have been set
aside in trust for the benefit of the bondholders, such the
project or projects, if then in good condition and repair to the
satisfaction of the commissioner of the state division of
highways, shall be transferred to the state division of highways
and shall thereafter be maintained by the state division of
highways free of tolls: Provided, That the parkways authority
may thereafter charge tolls for the use of any such project and
for the reconstruction, improvement, maintenance and repair
thereof, except as may be limited by applicable federal laws, and
pledge such the tolls to the payment of bonds issued under the
provisions of this article in connection with another project or
projects, or any combination thereof, but any such pledge of
tolls of a parkway project to the payment of bonds issued in
connection with another project or projects shall may not be
effectual until the principal of and the interest on the bonds
issued in connection with the first mentioned project shall have
been paid or provision made for their payment.
(b) No later than the first day of February, one thousand
nine hundred ninety, the parkways authority shall discontinue,
remove and not relocate all toll collection facilities on the
West Virginia Turnpike as the same existed on June first, one thousand nine hundred eighty-nine, except for the three main toll
barriers and collection facilities, and provided solely that the
provisions of section eighteen-a are complied with, the toll
collection facilities at the intersection of U.S. Route 19
(Corridor "L") and said the turnpike: Provided, That nothing
herein may be construed to prohibit placement of new tolls to the
extent permitted by federal law for any new expressway, turnpike,
trunkline, feeder road, state local service road, or park and
forest road connected to the West Virginia Turnpike and
constructed after the first day of June, one thousand nine
hundred eighty-nine.
(c) No later than the first day of July, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-seven, the parkways authority shall establish,
advertise, implement and otherwise make generally available to
all qualified members of the public, resident or nonresident, a
system of commuter passes, in a form to be determined by the
authority. The commuter passes shall, at a minimum, permit the
holder of such pass or passes, after paying the applicable fee to
the authority, to travel through the three main toll barriers and
collection facilities on the West Virginia Turnpike, on an
unlimited basis, without additional charge, for a period of one
year after the issuance of said commuter pass: Provided, That
the cost for such commuter pass or passes may not exceed more than ten dollars per year per toll barrier.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to establish commuter
passes for the West Virginia Turnpike.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken
from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language
that would be added.