What happens if the toll revenue is less than the payments to the private operator?
• TransLink anticipates that it will be a few years before toll revenue completely covers the payments to the operating company. That’s why those payments are smaller at the beginning of the period. We will cover the difference out of general revenue, just as we have always done for the gap between transit operating costs and transit fares. In the case of the Golden Ears Bridge, our financial models indicate that we will run a surplus over the 32 year period. • What if the bridge is paid off sooner than that? Will the tolls be removed before the 32 years are up? • The TransLink Board of Directors of the time will have to decide what to do. • How is the public receiving the bridge? • So far, the response has been generally positive. The reactions focus primarily on the savings in time, fuel and other costs associated with driving. They note how much more family time they have, now that they don’t have to set aside long stretches of their day for commuting; one man whose business is in N
