Turnpike eyed as a cash cow

Turnpike eyed as a cash cow

Just a year ago, during his cam- paign for governor, John Kasich said that privatizing the turnpike “doesn’t make a lot of sense,” which pretty much took the issue off the table during the gubernatorial campaign.

Within weeks of his election, however, Kasich apparently had an epiphany, and before he even took office in January he had his staff looking at the possibility of easing Ohio’s 241-mile turnpike to private interests.

Since then, the governor’s move toward privatization just keeps picking up speed. The new budget authorizes seeking proposals for a turnpike lease, with the General Assembly having the last word.

Last week Kasich was in Toledo, where he picked up the support of that city’s mayor, Michael Bell, after Kasich said proceeds from leasing the Turnpike could be used to widen I-75 or even dredge Toledo’s harbor.

Source of pork

Thus the Turnpike, built and paid for by motorists and truckers who use the road and pay the tolls, would become a cash cow for the state, with favored areas becoming the recipients of the governor’s and General Assembly’s largess.

That’s a recipe for great power politics, but forgive us for being skeptical.

A year ago Kasich said privatization didn’t make sense because equity markets had changed since Indiana leased its turnpike. Indiana got $3.85 billion from a foreign consortium in a 75-year deal, while turnpike users saw tolls double over five years.

Kasich is now talking about Ohio getting $3 billion on a 40-year lease, with the state maintaining control over toll increases.

Perhaps the governor could draw on his background in the financial industry to explain what has changed in the marketplace from a year ago, when he said leasing the turnpike would have been a bad deal.