Case Law Details
Town of Portsmouth v. Lewis
Project Description:
This project involved the proposed replacement of the 56-year-old Sakonnet River Bridge, which connected the towns of Tiverton and Portsmouth, Rhode Island. The existing bridge was toll-free, but the EIS considered tolling the new bridge. Due to public opposition, tolling was dropped from consideration prior to completion of the NEPA process. In 2003, FHWA issued a ROD approving construction of a new bridge without tolls. The bridge opened in September 2012, without tolls. But during the same year, the State legislature passed legislation transferring responsibility for the bridge from the Rhode Island DOT to the newly created Rhode Island Tunnel and Bridge Authority (RITBA); the legislation allowed RITBA to impose tolls as a means of generating revenue. In January 2013, the Rhode Island DOT issued a lengthy reevaluation of the 2003 FEIS. The reevaluation considered the effects of tolling the new bridge. FHWA then issued a revised ROD approving tolling of the new bridge. Rhode Island DOT then transferred the bridge to RITBA, which announced its intention to begin toll collection on the bridge. The initial toll rates were set at $3.75 for out-of-State drivers and 75 cents for Rhode Island drivers with a Rhode Island E–Z Pass transponder.
2014 WL 6792065
2014 WL 6792065
U.S. District Court – Rhode Island
12/03/2014
Sakonnet River Bridge
Highway
Case Summary
The plaintiff, the Town of Portsmouth, filed a lawsuit challenging FHWA’s approval of the revised ROD. The plaintiffs claimed that the reevaluation did not adequately assess the impacts of tolling, and also claimed that tolling violated 23 U.S.C. 301, which restricts tolling on federal-aid highways. The plaintiffs sought a preliminary injunction, which the court denied, based on a finding that the plaintiffs failed to show that they would suffer irreparable harm if tolling were to begin before the court issued its decision in the case. The litigation continued, and the plaintiffs filed an amended complaint raising additional claims. But in June 2014, the State legislature passed another law prohibiting tolling of the bridge. Based on that legislation, the court dismissed the case as moot.
Key Holdings
Litigation Procedure Mootness. Despite the 2014 legislation prohibiting tolls from being imposed on the new bridge, the Town of Portsmouth continued to pursue its lawsuit, seeking a declaration that the original tolling proposal had been illegal. The Town argued that the case was not moot because the State might change its mind yet again and attempt to re-impose tolls. The court noted that the tolling equipment had been removed and was being sold, and found that “there is no reasonable expectation that RITBA will attempt to impose tolls on the Bridge when this litigation is terminated.” Therefore, the court dismissed the case as moot.
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