Auditor General Eugene DePasquale announced Tuesday an audit of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission shows that the commission is on potentially unstable financial ground that could have serious repercussions on the state’s entire transportation system if the General Assembly doesn’t act soon.

The latest performance audit of the turnpike, which covered fiscal years 2014 to 2016, found that toll violations are increasing, causing the turnpike commission to write off $12 million to $20 million per year. The audit also notes that failing to meet the commission’s unrealistic traffic and revenue projections could contribute to a financial and statewide transportation crisis in the next seven years.

“The turnpike is relying on unrealistic revenue growth projections that should be setting off alarms now and in the near future,” DePasquale said. “On a positive note, our audit found that the commission is following its procurement rules when it comes to awarding contracts and that the turnpike commission is managing its current financial situation.”

For the full audit click here. 

PA Turnpike Commission Chairman Sean Logan issued the following statement in response to an audit:

“I deeply appreciate the Auditor General’s thorough review along with the recommendations he made. We remain committed to improving our operations to become more efficient while providing safe, efficient travel for our 500,000 daily customers.

“This audit is one of several independent and internal audits — both statutory and voluntary — performed on the Commission’s finances and operations.

“We agree with Auditor DePasquale that our mounting debt, due largely to payments to PennDOT as mandated by state law, is a growing concern, and we are taking steps to address that challenge. We look forward to working with the auditor as well as the legislature to secure passage of meaningful tolling enforcement legislation that will allow all tolling agencies in the state to make sure motorists pay their fair share.

“We owe it to our customers to ensure we are investing their toll dollars wisely. That is why I recently directed staff to conduct a comprehensive reassessment of capital spending to confirm our construction projects are affordable and aligned with our strategic plan. Engineering staff continues the review — sparked in part by our growing debt — which we expect to be complete in the next 30 days.

“I am confident we are on the right track, but we can always do more to improve operations. For that reason, we are grateful for the exhaustive review and report from the Auditor General and his team.”