UPDATE: 30 Jan 2007. I should have been clearer that while NJPIRG has serious concerns, its position is not in full opposition to what is a not-yet-fully-described plan to privatize NJ toll roads.

Here's a note from Abigail Caplovitz Field, NJPIRG legislative advocate: To clarify, NJPIRG's position is one of open-minded but serious concern. We will listen to the details of a deal before judging it. That said, there are many reasons to be concerned. We recognize that addressing these concerns would make the road less valuable to potential investors. Nonetheless, the furtherance of the public interest, not the size of the payout, must be the focus of any decision about a possible privatization deal. Our chief concerns are the following:

1. The length of deals in other states--50, 75, and 99 years--is too long to cede public control over key pieces of infrastructure; the unforeseeable can occur that changes everything. After all, the interstate highway system was created 50 years ago; the Model T was introduced 99 years ago.

2. The size of the scheduled toll hikes: Indiana and Chicago allow punitive increases that may become unaffordable to many drivers.

3. Loss of public control over the state's transportation decision making -- particularly given the long time-frames involved.

4. Use of proceeds: To the extent that the proceeds were used for anything other than paying off other long-term debt and restructuring the state's transportation fund, a sell-off would seriously worsen the state's existing revenue shortfalls by eliminating public use of toll revenues for generations to come.

Original post: U.S. PIRG tax and budget analyst Phineas Baxandall, Ph.D, has a nice critique of NJ governor Jon Corzine's short-sighted plan to sell off the state's toll roads in today's New York Time story Option to Rent: Great New Jersey Views, Many Lanes, Tollbooths Included. Baxandall:

New Jersey has a long track record of using short-term fixes for long-term budget problems. If they spend the money in the first 10 years, the question is what happens in Year 11.