The Richmond Metropolitan Authority voted Tuesday to increase the 50-cent tolls on the Powhite Parkway Plaza and Downtown Expressway to 70 cents starting in September.
After much discussion, the authority, which is comprised of representatives from Richmond and the counties of Henrico and Chesterfield, voted to increase the tolls because of the increased costs of asphalt, steel, maintaining the roads, which include several bridges, and the increased cost of living.
Additionally, the Virginia Department of Transportation told the authority that as of July 1, it would no longer be spending $500,000 in routine maintenance on the roads, such as snow removal and grass cutting.
The authority has not yet decided how much the lower priced tolls will increase, but they will go up, said Linda McElroy, RMA public relations manager.
The increase will go into effect Sept. 8 because the authority wanted to complete its open road toll plaza on Powhite Parkway, which includes three E-ZPass express lanes in both directions without toll booths that allow drivers to go through at near highway speed. Members also wanted to wait until after the Labor Day holiday.
It's the first increase in more than a decade, board members pointed out, and even the one before that occurred 10 years earlier.
"No one's going to be happy and I'm sorry there have to be tolls at all. I'm a believer in free roads," authority chairman Jim Jenkins said.
"The General Assembly needs to address the transportation needs of the state by instituting a gas tax because it's the fairest way. It affects everybody equally, and you have the ability to adjust how you use the roads and what kind of vehicle you drive. If not, there will be more toll roads."
Jenkins doesn't anticipate another toll increase for at least another decade because of the amount of money this hike will raise. Previous proposals Tuesday for increasing the tolls to 75 cents for cash and 70 cents for E-ZPass users failed on a 6-5 vote, Jenkins said, because that would have generated more money than necessary.
Board members said that on a "good Friday" more than 100,000 transactions take place on Powhite, while the Downtown Expressway sees between 60,000 and 70,000 transactions on a heavily traveled day.
Another proposal to increase the tolls to 65 cents would have required another toll increase in 2012, Jenkins said.