Trustee for Defaulted Florida Bridge Seeks Toll Hike

The Bond Buyer reports:

As bonds issued to build north Florida's Garcon Point Bridge fall further into default, the trustee says tolls must be raised.

The proposal left the bridge agency without any formal leadership after its last board member resigned in protest and drew the ire of politicians and residents who have a love-hate relationship with the 3.5-mile Pensacola Bay span.

The bridge provides drivers in Florida's panhandle with a convenient, safer alternative than competing freeways, though it already has some of the highest toll rates in the state. The tolls, however, don't raise enough money to cover the non-recourse bond payments.

As of Jan. 1, bondholders were owed $134 million on the current interest and capital appreciation bonds that were issued to build the 16-year-old, two-lane bridge.

Traffic and toll revenue never met projections. After draining the debt service reserve and several years of defaults, the bonds were accelerated in 2013. The tolls, the only security for investors, still do not cover debt payments.

Guess who's going to want a tax increase when their public pension check is "in the mail" ?