Senator Tim Sheldon (D-Potlatch) has introduced Senate Bill 5104, which would prohibit local governments from imposing vehicle tolls. This would impact cities like Seattle, where Mayor Jenny Durkan is advocating for a toll by 2021 that drivers would have to pay to enter the city. If it passes, Seattle will be the first in the nation to impose such a toll.

When I attended the Autonomous Vehicle Policy Conference last September, someone asked the Seattle Department of Transportation how the agency is going to protect the dignity of people who can’t afford to live in Seattle and will continue to drive single-occupant vehicles into the city. The agency’s representative answered, “As the city continues to grow, in order for the city to develop economically…the way that people travel into Seattle will have to change. It can be tough for people who are used to this system…they may have to pay a higher price for that luxury to travel into the core and park their vehicle.”

In one breath, urban planners who support these toll policies opine about equity and affordability and how difficult it is for people to maintain a standard of living - then in the same breath - tell us that those who cannot afford to live near the city have to pay more for the “luxury” of traveling to work.

Senator Sheldon’s comments on his bill in his recent press release seem to reflect a similar frustration with these punitive proposals:

“At last we can see Seattle’s war on the automobile for the anti-democratic effort it really is. Do we really want a society where only the rich can afford to drive? Tolling might not be a problem if you’re the sort of person who can afford a Tesla, but what about the rest of us? We are the riff-raff Seattle wants to keep out...Our road network serves all of us. We pay the same road taxes and sit through the same traffic jams. Everyone has the same freedom of mobility. But when Seattle starts charging a $15 or $20 admission fee at the city gate, you’re going to see a real difference between the haves and have-nots. If that’s not class warfare, I don’t know what is.”