Taking on debt, when done for right reasons, is sometimes best option

WHAT REALLY MATTERS: The poor condition of one of the Route 6 and 10 bridges in Providence's Olneyville neighborhood requires extensive support to remain open. / PBN FILE PHOTO/ MICHAEL SALERNO
WHAT REALLY MATTERS: The poor condition of one of the Route 6 and 10 bridges in Providence's Olneyville neighborhood requires extensive support to remain open. / PBN FILE PHOTO/ MICHAEL SALERNO

Businesses know that investment is the prelude to future profitability. Without it, the enterprise withers and dies sooner or later. Much of the resistance to Gov. Gina M. Raimondo’s truck-tolling plan to invest in our roads and bridges is based on the assumption that future toll revenue will support bond issuance today. Of course, there

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  1. Perhaps the “anti-bonding line of reasoning” comes from the fact that Rhode Island is up to it’s neck in bond debt already and there is very little information available as to the progress of their payoff. Every general election, Rhode Islanders open up their purse to many new bond financed projects, some very admirable yet, nonetheless adding to the debt load and harming the state’s credit standing.
    It also should be noted that the road and bridge situation has more to do with inefficiency, mismanagement, cost overruns, design errors and general waste than simply “not spending enough” . To pass another bond, hand the DOT another pile of money and have the department bumble on the way it always has is foolish. Let’s overhaul the department, combine it with the Turnpike and Bridge authority into one efficient operation. (Really, does the nation’s smallest state need two separate road authorities?) Then look at financing for the future without going to the trough of the bond seller.
    Remember also that Rhode Island’s close state lines make it easy to push commerce across the border and repel new business when we toll, or tack on more fees and taxes.