Inside anti-toll protests: Will they become CT’s new Tea Party?

On By Fred McNultyIn Videos

Do you support tolls on Connecticut highways?

Over the past year, local group No Tolls CT has grown to be the face of opposing tolls’ implementation, and has gained support from thousands all over the state. The group has gained support from many conservatives who oppose toll proposals, backed by many Democrats. Mieum Media attended anti-toll protests on March 9, 2019 to see what its supporters had to say, and to see what the group is all about.

Extended Interviews:

Citations:

#1: Gosselin, Jesse. “Crash Survivor Recalls Accident That Removed Connecticut’s Tolls.” WTNH, 24 Apr. 2015, http://www.wtnh.com/news/politics/crash-survivor-recalls-accident-that-removed-connecticuts-tolls_20180412094703240/1118432358. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019.

#2: “6 Die in Crash at Toll Station in Connecticut.” The New York Times, 20 Jan. 1983, http://www.nytimes.com/1983/01/20/nyregion/6-die-in-crash-at-toll-station-in-connecticut.html. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019.

#3: “Why Does The Interstate System Include Toll Facilities?” Federal Highway Administration, 8 Sept. 2017, http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/tollroad.cfm. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019.

#4: Connecticut Senate Republicans, and Connecticut House Republicans. “Prioritize Progress.” Feb. 2019, ctsenaterepublicans.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/PrioritizeProgress_JanFeb2019_Final.pdf. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019.

#5: Hughes, Paul. “Democrats Way for the Highway: Majority Leader Says Opponents Deluded; Tolls Only Answer.” Republican-American, 6 Mar. 2019, http://www.rep-am.com/local/news-local/2019/03/06/updated-toll-advocates-opponents-square-off-in-hartford-wednesday-morning/. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019.

#6: WFSB 3. “VIDEO: Lamont Pledges No Tolls for Passenger Cars.” YouTube, 18 Oct. 2018, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnJji8OK9bw. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019.

#7: Lamont, Ned. “A Path Forward on Tolling.” Connecticut Post, 16 Feb. 2019, http://www.ctpost.com/opinion/article/Gov-Ned-Lamont-A-path-forward-on-tolling-13620534.php. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019.

#8: Ramirez, Hector, and Bob Wilson. “News 8 Breaks Down the Average Toll Costs for Connecticut Commuters.” WTNH, 7 Mar. 2019, http://www.wtnh.com/news/politics/news-8-breaks-down-the-average-toll-costs-for-connecticut-commuters-ct-drivers-react/1831302947. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019.

#9: WTNH. “Governor Ned Lamont’s First State Budget Address.” YouTube, 20 Feb. 2019, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hls7tQXgO9E. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019.

#10: No Tolls CT, http://www.notollsct.org. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019.

#11: Scinto, Rich. “New Tolls Cost Released: Here’s How Much And Where They Could Be.” Across Connecticut, CT Patch, 22 Dec. 2018, patch.com/connecticut/across-ct/new-tolls-cost-released-heres-how-much-where-they-could-be. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019.

#12: Skibitth. “Elevated Toll Booth with Speed Up Lanes – Cities Skylines: Custom Builds.” YouTube, 19 Aug. 2017, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg4DAp20Snc. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019. 

This comes from a video game called Skylines, but is a visually appealing, reasonably accurate representation of toll gantries.

#13: Bob Stefanowski for Governor. “Bob The Rebuilder Can Fix Connecticut.” YouTube, 5 Oct. 2018, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8mR4LY24g0. Accessed 11 Mar. 2019.

#14: British Pathé. “Us Toll Gate (1955).” YouTube, 13 Apr. 2014, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QSNBTWxiCI. Accessed 11 Mar. 2019.

#15: The Seattle Times. “Trump: ‘I Feel Very Badly for Paul Manafort’.” YouTube, 11 Mar. 2019, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFykHcvmf1g. Accessed 11 Mar. 2019.

#16: Miramax. “Pulp Fiction – ‘A Miracle?’.” YouTube, 19 Jan. 2016, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mw8NR6p8gyI. Accessed 11 Mar. 2019.

#17: VOA News. “Debate Over Abortion, As 45th Pro-Life Rally Takes Place in Washington.” YouTube, 18 Jan. 2018, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1S0Zdf0l5U. Accessed 11 Mar. 2019.

#18: “FAIR’s ‘Fiscal Burden of Illegal Immigration? Study Is Fatally Flawed.” Cato Institute, 29 Sept. 2017, http://www.cato.org/blog/fairs-fiscal-burden-illegal-immigration-study-fatally-flawed. Accessed 11 Mar. 2019.

#19: “Study Shows Value of Undocumented Immigrants.” Connecticut Post, 26 Feb. 2017, http://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Study-shows-value-of-undocumented-immigrants-10959317.php. Accessed 11 Mar. 2019.

#20: No Tolls CT. “”I want to make something very clear.”.” Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/notollsct/photos/a.1410207655758030/1898386463606811/.

#21: “New Poll Shows Support for Connecticut Adopting Tolls to Upgrade Aging Infrastructure.” The Central CT Roundup, 12 Mar. 2019, centralctroundup.com/2019/03/12/new-poll-shows-support-for-connecticut-adopting-tolls-to-upgrade-aging-infrastructure/. Accessed 13 Mar. 2019.

#22: MacLeod, Kevin. “Driving Concern.” FreePD.com, freepd.com/music/Driving%20Concern.mp3. Accessed 10 Mar. 2019. File originally posted online under a Creative Commons Zero license.

#23:  Outro Song: “Fill Me In” by Atwaters featuring Yeon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UW0iKqFMoxo Used with artist’s consent. The contents and views of this video may not necessarily be shared with the artist.