Toll roads have been avoided in past years as lawmakers hesitated to create a pay-to-play transportation system such as those used widely on the East Coast. But budget trouble this year has meant smoother sailing for a measure that would allow the state to partner with a private operator to maintain toll roads.

Dozens of programs have been cut or terminated entirely and lawmakers who in the past have fought against user fees and bonding measures are beginning to change their tune.

Already, the House has passed its version of a bill to allow the Arizona Department of Transportation to contract with private companies for the construction of toll roads. The House voted 53-1 last month to advance H2396 without a floor debate. Rep. Andy Biggs, a Republican from Gilbert, was the bill's primary sponsor.  

The measure is one of only nine bills to advance to the Senate this session. A total of 1099 bills have been filed in both chambers.

The Senate is not hearing bills just yet, as it works on budget items first. But the proposal was granted the second-best thing: a presentation in the Senate Natural Resources, Infrastructure and Public Debt Committee on April 13.

Lawmakers on the committee heard ADOT officials present the possibility of developing a private-public partnership – often referred to as P3s – to expand the state's highway infrastructure using revenue collected from toll roads. Expert testimony allows lawmakers to indirectly review the pros and cons of policy measures, which would in theory speed up the voting process once the bill is cleared for an official vote.

Arizona law already permits the construction of toll roads, but specific projects have been held up in the Legislature in past years.

Toll roads are seen by many Republicans as a way for the state to abandon the gas-tax model for funding road construction. But GOP-sponsored bills have faced opposition in the past from other caucus members concerned that the policy would be overused by a state desperate for revenue.

"In the past we have heard comments all the way from P3s will solve all of your problems to P3s are the very incarnate of evil," said John McGee, chief financial officer for the Arizona Department of Transportation. "And, as always, the truth is somewhere in the middle."

Senators John Nelson and Pamela Gorman have introduced measures in the Senate that are similar to Biggs' bill, but none has been assigned to a committee due to leadership's decision not to hear any bills until an agreement can be made on the fiscal 2010 budget.

According to ADOT, the state would need to invest $120 billion in roadway infrastructure by the year 2050 to keep up with growth. Today's funding levels would fall short of the need by as much as half.

ADOT estimates that the state could collect as much as $150 million annually in toll road fees if the state were to convert 10 percent of its highways into toll roads.

McGee warned the committee that toll roads would not be a "cure all" for the state's transportation needs. Toll-road project, he said, should be seriously considered before launched and should only be applied to larger construction ventures.

"Toll roads cannot address all transportation needs," McGee said. "But they can substantially help states fund needed infrastructure growth."

If the House bill were to pass, Arizona would become the 26 state to use toll roads to finance transportation infrastructure, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.