Grain Valley, Mo., September 11, 2008 –The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) denied a request from Pennsylvania transportation officials to add tolls to I-80. The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) has been engaged in fighting the tolling of existing highways and believes the decision is a big win for truckers, highway users and businesses in Pennsylvania.

“This reaffirms what we have been saying since Act 44 passed last year,” said OOIDA Government Affairs Director Mike Joyce.  “That not only would tolling I-80 be a reprehensible policy, but it would go against existing federal law as well. We may not always agree with Secretary Peters’ decisions, but this one she sure got right.”

“We owe a debt of gratitude to Congressman John Peterson and all of the other public leaders who stood up to oppose the imposition of tolls on I-80,” added Joyce. “Leaders like Congressman Phil English and state Representatives Mike Turzai and Scott Hutchinson.”

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association is a trade association representing the interests of small-business trucking professionals and professional truck drivers. The Association currently has more than 159,000 members in the United States and Canada. OOIDA was established in 1973 and is headquartered in the greater Kansas City, Missouri area.