The North Carolina Turnpike Authority (NCTA) was created in 2002 as a board with the authority to study, plan, develop and undertake preliminary design work for toll roads and toll bridges in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The NCTA has the power to design, establish, purchase, construct, operate, and maintain certain up to nine (originally three) toll road projects. It was created "out of a need to implement alternative financing to pay for much-needed roads during a time of rapid growth, dwindling resources and skyrocketing costs".
At the present time, the NCTA is operating the Triangle Parkway and Western Wake Freeway as toll roads. Several other projects across the state are under consideration.
The NCTA was created with HR644, a bill which passed both houses of the North Carolina General Assembly and was signed into law by Governor Mike Easley on October 3, 2002. The law prohibits the NCTA from converting any existing roads in the non-tolled system to toll roads, but there is a loophole in the legislation. An existing free road can be converted into a toll road if it "is needed to help establish the financial viability" of a nearby toll project. In addition, the law mandates the North Carolina Department of Transportation to maintain an existing, alternate, comparable non-toll route for each toll route constructed by the NCTA.
Read more about North Carolina Turnpike Authority: Criticism, See Also
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