By Eileen Buckley
Buffalo, NY – The Greater Buffalo Niagara Regional Transportation Council has released a long awaited study on the impact of removing the Lackawanna Toll barriers.
The Transportation Council's executive director Hal Morse says it is ready for public view. Morse says they examined three separate scenarios in the Southtowns, including moving the toll barriers beyond exits 56 or 57.
"We looked at how much tolls would decrease by moving the toll barriers," Morse said. "There would be less collection costs, so there are some offsets.
"Long term, we're looking at what the capital costs would be for making a change like that."
The State Thruway Authority would need to approve any changes of the toll barriers.
This was the same study that Erie County Clerk David Swarts says was due for release more than four years ago. But the Council met with Swarts and Hamburg Town Council member Kathy Hochul Wednesday. Swarts says he's not ready to comment until he has a chance to review it.