Time for a reality check on tolls discourse

Tolls have become a Connecticut reality series with no prizes.

In the latest episode, Gov. Ned Lamont has again summoned accusations of impersonating a beach sandal. After flipping from a campaign vision of trucksonly tolls to tolls for all during his first budget pitch, he is reverting to what he was selling last summer.

Lamont is huddling with top Democrats to develop a plan to toll trucks, and only then at bridges in need of repair.

Republicans could claim this as a victory, but it’s just too easy to stand firm in the antitoll position. Opposing tolls is like a 6yearold opposing Brussel sprouts. At some point we wll all swallow something distasteful.

And it’s lazy to paint truckers as the villains. Consider the goods they’re transporting and they won’t seem like the bad guys.

We also can’t muster too much objection to Lamont’s flip or his flop. That is likely the brand of governor he’s going to be. He changes his mind, and his critics would never complain if he flopped to their side.

But this reality series needs a reality check. Tolls

were supposed to be the dominant theme of Lamont’s first season. Instead, residents are stuck in traffic in a dark tunnel with no clue to what awaits them on the other side.

Tolls? No tolls? Tolls for trucks? Tolls every mile? No tolls on the Merritt Parkway?

It’s the greatest reason to take up cycling since the 1973 gas crisis.

We don’t need to peek at the script to predict future episodes of “It’s Taking a Toll.” Republicans will not change their public position on tolls. Lamont isn’t going to pretend it was all a dream and pivot his flipflops onto another fundraising strategy. Connecticut residents will remain in that tunnel.

It’s time to get the discourse in front of the public, and with Republican participation. Voters can hardly form an opinion on something that doesn’t even qualify as a proposal because it lacks specifics. Putting tolls near bridges that need work may sound like a compromise, but there are 200 bridges in the state categorized as being in “poor condition.”

Putting temporary gantries near some of those bridges would be inefficient. If tolls are going to return, they can’t be treated like a winter popup store.

In our search for leadership on this issue, there were signals of hope at a summit involving Lamont and his peers in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, Gov. Gina Raimondo and Gov. Charlie Baker, respectively.

Raimundo is a Democrat and Baker a Republican, but they reportedly encouraged Lamont to stay the course. It’s certainly not in their interest to have a border state fail to upgrade an infrastructure their residents use as well.

They also brainstormed possible collaborations on issues such as renewable energy, datasharing and job training.

Progress is actually made when people get together in a room. Connecticut needs to write a new script.

Voters can hardly form an opinion on something that doesn’t even qualify as a proposal because it lacks specifics.