The existing Maine Turnpike (I-95) toll plaza was built in 1969. It was expected to last 25 years. Unfortunately, the Authority built the facility on wetlands; it’s sinking at a rate of about an inch a year. Finding an alternative site has been… problematic. For one thing, the southern end of the Maine Turnpike is littered with wetlands. For another, the proposed “dry land” location is meeting stiff local opposition. According to The Portland Press Herald, York residents don’t want the $35m toll plaza. "They're taking out our neighborhood," says Michael Walek. Walek says a crash at the toll plaza involving a chemical truck carrying chemicals– or a chlorine leak at the local treatment plant– would endanger hundreds of lives. "You certainly couldn't evacuate a backed-up highway like we get in the summertime." Suggestion: Just tear down the plaza that’s sinking, tighten the budget belt and call it good.

Wait, it's worse than that… The Bath Chronicle reports that Ilya Galic drove into the spa town and parked in a pay-as-you-go parking lot. He fed a ticket machine £1.20 ($2.38) for his one-hour stay. The meter only registered £1, missing 20 pence (about 40 cents). Galic complained to the parking attendant, who told him the machines often “went wrong,” and promised to sort out the matter. Just to be sure, Galic phoned the parking office, who told him someone would look it. Last month, Galic received a letter demanding a £353.74 ($701) parking penalty payment. A bailiff turned up at Galic’s house to claim one of the family’s cars as payment for the debt. When Galic asked the bailiff to leave, he called the police. Four policemen arrived at his Newbridge home. The bailiff eventually “settled” for £410.99 ($815.52), around six weeks worth of Galic’s pension income (which covered assorted additional fees). A council spokeswoman was unmoved. The authority had not received any complaints in writing, so that’s that. 

Back in early February, we reported that Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell was asking for funding for a pilot program of speed-detection cameras along a "treacherous" stretch of I-95. "Those who choose to break the rules of the road need to learn the hard way," said Rell. Today, The Hartford Courant is reporting "a high-profile defeat" for the Gov. Invoking fears of Big Brother, a legislative committee has rejected her plan after "an unusual philosophical discussion" over the rights of drivers and the power of government. The majority say the public's right to privacy outweighs the risks to public safety from speeding. State Rep. Ernest Hewett said "The camera will take a picture, and 10 seconds later, someone will get into a catastrophic accident. This is about revenue." Rep. Linda Orange said the bill was well-intentioned, "but it does violate civil rights." Representative James Shapiro says "Cameras aren't proven to make any one safer." What's more, "State surveillance of our law-abiding citizens is not an area in which I am looking for Connecticut to lead. A lot of other right-thinking people have made that judgment, and that's why these cameras have not caught on. Placing importance on our civil liberties is an American characteristic. Benjamin Franklin said the man who trades his liberty for temporary security deserves neither."  

In the past 10 years, more than twenty-five thousand drivers have been caught by a speed camera in Chideock (pronounced ‘Chiddick’). According to the UK's Daily Mail, a location marking one part of the road’s 30mph zone was defined as “Seatown Road.” Problem: there’s no such place. The road’s real name is “Duck Street.” The discrepancy came to light when Alan Dawe appealed his speeding conviction. The judge in the case threw out the ticket, ruling that "We cannot be sure the stretch of road is [speed] restricted.” The Dorset Safety Camera Partnership (DSCP) has admitted that thousands of motorists were fined £60 in error. If all of those drivers appeal, the partnership would owe them £1.5m (U.S. $2.97m). Shouldn't the points be removed from offenders' licenses and the money be refunded automatically? And what about raised insurance premiums? And let me guess where the refunds will come from (now that the money's already spent): taxpayers. Meanwhile, guess what Auto Express discovered when they asked 100 city councils how they were spending the money from a multi-million pound “road safety grant?" Yup, speed cameras.

Yesterday, we reported that Mexico is protecting its car dealers by limiting American used-car imports to model year 1998. Today, The Houston Chronicle reports the import/export of choice: the ’98 Ford F-150. “You can throw the Blue Book away," says Luis Esparza, the sales manager for used-car dealer H.E.D. Sales in Houston. Over at Houston’s (“cash only”) Caribbean Auto Sales, one Bernardo Garcia figures a $5k ‘98 extended cab F-150 in good condition just went up by $500 to $700. Roddy McMichaels, owner of Longhorn Motor Co. says the Mexican stricture is no biggie; he seldom sells running cars or trucks destined for Mexico. "You'll see them on U.S. 59 hauling two or three of them,” he reveals. ”Pickups with 400k miles that they buy for $300. They take them down where labor and parts are cheap and fix them up." I guess used-car dealers near the border might want to stock up on ’98-model-year flatbed trucks, too.

Perhaps TTAC needs a new category, say "Stupid Car Tricks," where along with Jonny Lieberman's "Man Drives Stolen Car to a Police Station," we could add this: A Korean tourist was robbed at the Days Inn hotel on International Drive in Orlando early Monday morning- because the perps needed money to fill their SUV's gas tank. And according to WFTV, they might have gotten away with it, but they… wait for it… ran out of gas less than a quarter-mile from the crime scene. Police said two men and two women were caught in their "getaway car." Oh and while the police were on their trail, the suspects tried to toss everything they'd stolen out of the window, including the gun they used during the holdup (for better mpg?). With rising gas prices, perhaps the Prius will become the car of choice for criminals seeking that perfect getaway car.

KERO reports that California Sheriff's deputies looking for three suspected drug dealers in the Kern River Valley area ended up searching for their own patrol car instead. Sheriffs said they parked their marked unit behind an abandoned vehicle involved with their investigation. When they came back from searching for the suspects, their cruiser was gone. Sheriff's said it was “tampered with” and then semi-submerged in Lake Isabella, northwest of Bakersfield. One of the men admitted that he was hiding in the abandoned vehicle, but denied he was involved with the patrol car’s immersion. The other two suspected drug dealers were arrested on grand theft auto (amongst other charges). Meanwhile, the “long-awaited fourth installment” of Grand Theft Auto is due to be released on April 29th. Will art imitate life or vice versa?

Ex-Toyota and current Chrysler president Jim Press says every car his new employer makes— or will make once the automaker starts/finishes their long-promised model cull– will be a hybrid. Eventually. Meanwhile, Popular Mechanics claims the Prez' promise was "the first by a major auto executive that openly embraces hybrid technology as an across-the board sea change.” Nope. As we reported previously, Toyota executive vice president Kazuo Okamoto predicted Synergy Drive would become ToMoCo’s default drivetrain. Anyway, we've heard nothing about/from Chrysler's semi-independent "ENVI" hybrid development team since the Detroit Auto Show's awkward concept cars. And speaking of champagne dreams and caviar wishes, Press said Chrysler plans to build and sell as many Chrysler-branded products overseas as are currently sold in the U.S. (roughly 2.7m units). Again, no idea of what, when or where. Why? Because they like you.

Maine is enduring one of its snowiest winters on record . This has the state’s lawmakers pondering a bill that would allow the use of retractable studded tires year-round, reports WMTW. Under current Maine law, studded snow tires must be removed by May 1st. The bill, sponsored by State Senator Bill Diamond, would allow tires that deploy studs when road conditions get bad, and retract them when conditions improve. Diamond says the tires meet federal motor vehicle safety standards. According to gizmag.com, “retractable-stud tires incorporate an air bladder that pushes the studs out from inside the tire when needed, and deflates so the studs retract into the tire when not needed. The tires are not entirely maintenance free- the bladder needs to be refilled with air after the studs have been deployed around 50 times.” No comment.

Predictions that the price of gas will soar to four dollars a gallon have been circulating for days. According to the CBS News White House correspondent Peter Maer’s blog , the President isn’t in the loop. “Responding to this reporter's questions at a White House news conference today, Mr. Bush said he had not heard about analysts' predictions of the potential for $4-a-gallon gas later this spring when refiners re-formulate fuel blends for summer driving.” In fact… “CBS News radio affiliate KCBS in San Francisco reports regular is selling for $4.23 at a San Mateo, Calif., service station where premium goes for $4.43.” Considering that Bush is a former oil man who once owned Arbusto Energy, served as CEO of Spectrum 7 Energy, consulted for Harken Energy and receives briefings from, well, whoever he likes, you’d think he’d stay on top of this one. If so, you thought wrong.

As reported by OneNewsNow, more than 10k people have attended public hearings to "discuss" the proposed  four-thousand-mile network of toll roads known as the Trans-Texas Corridor (a.k.a. the "NAFTA superhighway").  "They're taking huge swaths of land. Some of it is prime agriculture land," Terry Hall of Texans Uniting for Reform and Freedom (TURF) protests. "And they're going [to] hand it over to private entities for commercial gain." Texas Governor Perry calls such critics "unenlightened." Perry claims people need the road system so they "don't spend all their time in gridlock instead of being with their kids at soccer practice or back home with their families." The Houston Chronicle reports on the public hearing in Katy, where dozens of speakers decried the road system as "un-American." "These are the things that started the American Revolution– the seizing of houses and land, and taxation without representation," according to Dianne Hodge of Waller. "If we need a new American Revolution to restore a government of the people, by the people and for the people, then let it begin in Texas."

Honda is known for manufacturing some of the sweetest-shifting transmissions in the world. Yet many owners of 2002 to 2008 model year cars claim that when shifting from second to third, the transmission resists, subtly grinds into third or pops out of third gear altogether. More than a thousand Civic Si owners have signed an online petition asking Honda to “correct the problem.” Over at 8thCivic.com, the list of ’06 through ’08 Si owners “signing” the "I have a 3rd gear problem" thread is up to 270. Recently, Road and Track published its Long-Term Test Wrap-Up of their 2006 Civic Si, and they experienced a “binding resistance going into 3rd, which would kick the gear-shift lever back to neutral if the clutch was let out a moment too soon," and speculate that “we're not sure if the gearbox issue is a design flaw or premature wear exacerbated by a diverse group of learning curves.” And this site offers video of a 2004 Accord six-speed popping out of third gear. Recently, Fox news in San Diego posted a “Call for a recall” video about the current-generation Si, and it’s spread like wildfire [shown above]. Disgruntled owners say Honda needs to resolve these issues, or risk damaging its reputation. You know, more.

Honda's totally-redesigned Fit (Jazz to the rest of the world) is set to debut at the 2008 New York International Auto Show. "The current Fit has been a tremendous success for Honda," U.S. exec veep Dick Colliver boasts [via PRNewswire] "The all-new Honda Fit will reconfirm that small can in fact be big." Yes, well the old Civic did that and look how that thing porked-up. Anyway, Honda will also be showing (in the pregnancy sense of the word) a prototype Pilot that "emphasizes authentic SUV styling." NYIAS is going down at the Jacob Javits Convention Center from March 21st through the 30th (full schedule here). TTAC's Robert Farago and Justin Berkowtiz will be confronting the suits on your behalf, only earlier. 

Following its decision to spend $2b manufacturing seats on the Indian subcontinent, the Detroit Free Press reveals that Chrysler LLC is outsourcing $120m worth data crunching to India. The contract is headed for the Tata Group, whose portfolio includes Nano-maker and Jag/Landie suitor Tata Motors. Chrysler spinmeister David Elshoff said Tata will be working on dealers’ online vehicle ordering system and maintaining the company's dealer-brand websites. “The first phase of this evolution and our new partnerships will start this month and will continue throughout 2008,” Jan Bertsch, Chrysler chief information officer told his employees. “As the year progresses, we'll continue to evaluate additional opportunities… and will keep you apprised of the outcomes of our efforts." Not surprisingly, Tata’s CEO was slightly more upbeat. "The expertise and in-depth knowledge of the automotive industry and Chrysler's business, coupled with our ability to deliver certainty of results will provide sustained value to Chrysler." Does this move indicate Chrysler's desire to outsource car-building to Tata Motors? They should live so long…

According to Automotive News [sub], Saturn's looking for a “slight” increase in ’08 sales. Speaking at its dealers party like it's 1999 confab in the City by the Bay, execs predicted the uptick will come from the Aura, Opel Astra and the Outlook. Just in case those cars don't fly off the lots, Saturn execs will put “conquest incentive cash” on the Astra’s hood (for non-Saturn trade-ins). Maybe. In certain markets. Later this year, Saturn will launch the Two Mode hybrid Vue. Beyond that… Saturn suits told dealers that GM expects its growth over the next five years to come from its Rethink division, helped along by a shift away from trucks. John Pitre, the GM of Motor City Auto Center in Bakersfield, CA is stoked. He says his average Saturn transaction prices have gone from $17k in ’06, to $21.5k in ’07. "Our Saturn store remodel will be done in July, so that's a sign that we're very bullish on the brand." Meanwhile, the bears are waking-up out of hibernation.