Deval Patrick On Transit, Mass Pike Tolls: We've Inherited A 'Sorry Legacy'

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Patrick: We've Inherited A 'Sorry Legacy'

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Nov 13, 2008 8:38 am US/Eastern

Patrick: We've Inherited A 'Sorry Legacy'

Read: Jon Keller's Blog

BOSTON (WBZ) ―

Click to enlarge 1 of 1: Gov. Deval Patrick (file image)
WBZ

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Read Jon Keller's Blog

Gov. Deval Patrick says mismanagement and neglect by past administrations has left the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority in dire fiscal straits, and fixing it will almost certainly mean higher tolls.

"This is the sorry legacy we have inherited," he wrote in an opinion column in Thursday's Boston Globe.

Patrick's has proposed dismantling the agency and distributing its responsibilities between the state Highway Department and the Massachusetts Port Authority.

He reiterated that plan but did not say who would assume the authority's $2.2 billion debt, mostly from Big Dig construction costs.

Patrick suggested the debt could be spread "through a combination of tolls, Massport revenues, Registry fees, and savings from eliminating the Turnpike Authority."

The column was published the day before the Turnpike Authority board meets to vote on proposed toll hikes.