OLDTOWN — The owner of Maryland’s last privately owned toll bridge has requested the state’s Public Service Commission to approve a rate increase that would double daily crossing costs.
Monthly pass holders’ rates would increase 28.6 percent to $18 a month from the current $14 rate, said Oldtown Toll Bridge LLC owner John F. Teter. Passage for cars and private pickups would move to $1 from 50 cents; to 50 cents from 25 cents for motorcycles; and to $4 from $2 for tractor-trailers.
During a public hearing hosted by the PSC Monday night at the former Oldtown School on Opessa Street, Teter himself acknowledged the state agency was unlikely to approve a rate increase. But the request might have been Teter’s way of softening the blow of a much harder message for bridge users.
“The state’s welcome to take over the bridge if they want to take it over,” Teter said of the single-lane wooden bridge that spans the Potomac River between Oldtown and Green Spring, W.Va. “It’s for sale. I didn’t build the bridge, and I certainly can’t build another one. Nor can I get the money to do it. This meeting is more or less about informing you that there may not be a bridge there. This really isn’t a meeting, as far as I’m concerned, for a toll rate (increase). I know I’m not going to get a toll rate increase. The toll bridge needs more money than anybody can generate here. And you can’t borrow the money to fix it.”
Teter said he was willing to sell the bridge for $66,000 — the same price for which he bought the bridge from former owners Jane A. Miller and Judy Walters O’Toole in 2004.
Many of the area residents from both sides of the river didn’t necessarily oppose a rate increase — just so long as any additional fees went toward bridge maintenance and repairs. Several bridge users expressed concern about the safety of the structure.
West Virginia resident Betty Schaidt said there have been few noticeable repairs to the bridge since she began crossing it in 1986. The last fee increase, which raised the monthly pass to $14 from $8, was supposed to take care of future repairs. But Schaidt said that hasn’t happened.
“As far as I’m concerned, that bridge isn’t safe to begin with,” Schaidt said. “The bridge should have been condemned a long time ago.”
If the PSC could earmark any rate increases for maintenance, Schaidt said, “that’s fine and dandy.”
Some residents were opposed to any rise in fees for any reason.
“If they give you a rate increase, I am not crossing your bridge,” said Green Spring resident Sandra Sentz. “You are not getting another dime.”
Judge Joel M. Bright, chief hearing examiner for the commission, noted the “unique” role the PSC has to play. The bridge is the only such entity the state commission regulates — its primary mission is to oversee utility companies. Safety isn’t an issue the PSC oversees. That’s handled by the state Department of Transportation.
“This is different than most companies that the (PSC) regulates,” Bright said. “In (most) cases, it’s a more sophisticated operation. They have reams of paperwork. In this case, Mr. Teter is alone. The commission does recognize that.”
Larry R. West asked Teter if he had submitted any business plan or other document that would allow stakeholders insight into the future of the bridge. Having such information might make any rate increase more tolerable, he said.
“To me, he hasn’t done his homework to the public or to the commission,” West said. “I think there’s a lot of questions here that can not be answered.”
During a 1 p.m. evidentiary hearing, Teter said an inspection report from Maryland-based KCI Technologies Inc. was complete and nearly ready for presentation. The inspection cost of $6,900 came from toll collections, Teter said.
West said he wonders “why we don’t get out of the 18th century” and build a better bridge.
Aileen Nolan agreed, in part.
“I don’t think any fair-minded person objects to Mr. Teter making a reasonable profit,” she said. “However, I think it has to be tempered with the knowledge of the community that you’re working with and in.”
Nolan said the area is “a depressed community. I think that has to be taken into the equation when you’re looking for a rate increase. I’m asking for some consideration for ordinary working people on both sides of the river.”
Said monthly pass buyer Bonnie Deurr: “How much higher are rates going to go? I don’t know how we’re going to do it. We have other bills to keep up with.”
Bright said the record would remain open until at least the spring and hinted at a second public meeting in the area. That would give stakeholders, including Teter, the time necessary to research possible grants and state or federal funding sources.
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