PETERSBURG, Va.  — Leaders of local governments are banding together to oppose Virginia's plan to install tolls on Interstate 95 to generate transportation revenue.

Officials from the counties of Greensville, Hanover, Sussex, and several cities and towns plan to hold a news conference Wednesday in Petersburg to discuss their effort.

Several trucking groups recently launched a campaign to get the Virginia Department of Transportation to drop its proposed plan to build a toll facility on I-95 in Sussex County. The toll would be $4 for passenger vehicles and $12 for tractor-trailers.

The Federal Highway Administration last fall gave VDOT preliminary approval to start a pilot tolling program on I-95 to raise money for expanding highway capacity and transportation improvements. The only facility proposed so far is the Sussex site.

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A group that opposes the toll says that tolling I-95 would put Virginia’s business-friendly reputation at risk by unfairly targeting trucking and commerce along I-95.

“At a time when Virginia is attempting to create jobs and promote itself as the premier state to do business, tolls will be a red flag for any company looking to relocate or do business in Virginia,” the group said on its website www.virginiatollfree95.com. “In essence, VDOT will be choosing winners and losers in the all too competitive environment of economic development.”

The Trucker staff can be reached for comment at editor@thetrucker.com.

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