RICHMOND — The State Corporation Commission (SCC) has approved a revised toll structure for the privately owned Dulles Greenway that raises the maximum base toll ceiling for cars from $3 to $4. The modified toll structure is effective October 1. However, the new maximum allowable toll will not be reached until 2012.
Noting the hundreds of public commentors expressing opposition to the proposed toll increase, the Commission said. “Almost 20 years ago, the Commonwealth made a series of policy decisions that leave us little choice but to make the decision we make in this case.”
The Dulles Greenway is a 14-mile limited access highway between Washington Dulles International Airport and Leesburg. Authority to construct and operate the road was granted by the Commission in 1990. There was general support favoring the project since there were no plans to build the facility with public funds. At that point in time the situation presented was that if a private toll road were not built, there would be no road at all.
The Commission is also permitting the owners, Toll Road Investors Partnership II, L.P. (TRIP II), to implement congestion management price premiums. The maximum base toll can be increased by about 20 percent for weekday traffic traveling in the peak period direction. The Commission said, “The introduction of congestion pricing to the toll structure will promote the efficient utilization of the Dulles Greenway.”
The Commission order does not mandate toll increases, and the toll ceiling will be phased-in over a five-year period. TRIP II may implement tolls lower than the ceiling, make adjustments on different dates, or adjust tolls to deter migration from the Greenway:
| Date | Maximum Base Tolls | Congestion Management Tolls |
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| January 1, 2009 | $3.40 | $4.00 |
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| July 1, 2010 | $3.70 | $4.50 |
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| January 1, 2012 | $4.00 | $4.80 |
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TRIP II’s audited financial statements indicate that it has experienced losses for every year since 1993 when roadway construction began. The Commission wrote, “We have no credible evidence challenging the accuracy of financial data.”
Recognizing that TRIP II’s interest expense alone has exceeded its total revenues over most of the years it has operated, the Commission said, “This is hardly a ‘cash cow’ enterprise, nor ‘highway robbery’ as some of the public witnesses have asserted.”
The record before the Commission supports a determination that the level of tolls will, as required by Virginia law, provide TRIP II with no more than a reasonable return while not discouraging use of the Dulles Greenway.
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Case Number PUE-2006-00081