Highway toll lanes not such a HOT idea

Re A HOT idea for the QEW, Editorial June 24 I challenge your notion that “giving road space away for free regardless of the time of day or traffic volume only encourages overuse.” Every litre of gas carries a 36-cent portion for tax. That is not exactly “free.”

And the suggestion that imposing a toll tax on our highways will result in fewer cars at rush hour is preposterous. I hardly think anyone is sitting on the QEW in rush hour because they have nothing else to do with their time. They are there because they have to go to work and they can’t afford to live in Toronto. And public transit is totally inadequate and at capacity, just like our highways.

This stupid idea of a random draw to award permits to 1,000 drivers at an initial cost of $60 per month may seem like chump change to the Star, but for many citizens, this is another strain on an already tight budget, unless of course you drive an Audi or are in a business where the toll tax will be a writeoff subsidized by the same guy who can’t afford to pay the $60 per month.

If the Star cared about workers on a tight budget who spend hours on our clogged highways and an archaic transit system, you would lobby governments to properly invest in a relevant and efficient transit system to north, east and west of Toronto. Then we can look at toll taxes on our roads that will benefit only luxury cars and businesses. Ken Robertson, Barrie

The section of Hwy. 403/QEW that has been chosen as the test site for high occupancy toll lanes carries all truck traffic travelling to Niagara border crossings from almost all of Ontario. This is already a dangerous mix of car and truck traffic, with trucks dominating the right two lanes and trying to travel at 115 km/h, while cars travel at 120 km/h. In any truck-and-car collision, those in the car suffer the most.

Enforcement of HOT lanes will also increase the danger exponentially, especially to officers charged with the task.

The only solution is to take back the 407 connection between the 403 in Oakville and the 403 in Burlington. Jim Cox, Oakville