News-Record.com

Our editorial today looks at possible changes in how North Carolina pays for transportation projects.

The most dramatic development is a preliminary agreement to proceed with planning for private construction and operation of the Mid-Currituck Bridge.

Here's a look at it.

At seven miles, this would be the longest bridge in North Carolina. At an estimated $659 million, it would cost more than twice as much as a replacement for the Yadkin River Bridge on I-85, itself a vital artery that the state can't afford to replace at this time (it's going to apply for federal funds). As Transportation Secretary Gene Conti told us this week, the state will NEVER have the money to build the Mid-Currituck Bridge. The only way to get it done is for a private company to undertake the project and recover its costs through tolls -- probably fairly steep tolls.

This is the perfect project for that approach because this bridge doesn't really have to be built. Its main benefit is to save driving time for people heading to the upper Outer Banks, around Corolla, for those willing to pay. Those not willing could still use the Wright Memorial Bridge across the mouth of Currituck Sound on Highway 158. (See map.)

Environmentalists might question why build another bridge at all.

I like bridges. The greatest I've been on is the Mackinac Bridge in Michigan, which spans the straits between lakes Huron and Michigan. It's five miles long and a tourist attraction in its own right. It also carries an interstate highway, I-75 and charges a toll of only $3 per car.

Speaking of tolls roads, they are definitely in our future.