Pay-off of bond debt to make turnpikes free at least 40 years away

A study delivered to Oklahoma lawmakers warns that while doing away with the state’s turnpike system is “doable,” the transition to toll-free highways would take years with a pay-off of current debt topping $3 billion.

To make matters worse for such a transition, the report’s authors at the Legislative Office of Fiscal Transparency (LOFT) also warn the current turnpike expansion program, ACCESS Oklahoma, adds another $6.6 billion in principal bond debt to be paid over the next 13 years, “effectively tripling the amount the state would be paying back.”