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With the proposal to toll nine major interstate bridges to pay for their replacement or rehabilitation now dead, a panel of Pennsylvania state senators set out to explore what happens next to address these costly but necessary transportation projects.

Pennsylvania’s governor, General Assembly legislators and a judge dealt legal blows to permanently stop the state Department of Transportation’s effort to toll nine bridges to create revenue for repairs.

In a sweeping censure, a Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court judge granted a request from eight municipalities and issued an injunction preventing state transportation officials from proceeding with plans to impose bridge tolls.

The Pennsylvania Motor Truck Association is raising alarm about the possible costs to motor carriers of a tolling proposal from the state’s Department of Transportation to pay for upgrades to as many as nine highway bridges.

Inspired by Washington state’s successful legislation this year giving truckers greater access to bathroom facilities, a Pennsylvania lawmaker has introduced a bill in that state’s General Assembly to do the same.

Forty years ago, Pennsylvania became a leader in self-driving vehicles when it deployed one to help clean up the nuclear accident at Three Mile Island in Harrisburg.

It’s only an idea for now, but Pennsylvania’s proposed switch from a fuel tax to a miles-driven fee to help generate more money for transportation could be a boon for the trucking industry.

Pennsylvania’s transportation funding panel has proposed gas-tax alternative options that include a doubling of vehicle registration fees, which a state trucking leader said would lead to interstate trucking companies registering their trucks in other states.

In an effort to expand economic and operational capacity, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has invested $10 million in airports.

It’s not clear yet if Pennsylvania drivers will pay $1 or $2 to cross major bridges, but Pennsylvania needs billions of dollars from somewhere for transportation, state Rep. Mike Carroll said.