Pike reports $31m saved in cost cuts

Trimmed $21m in Big Dig fees

Massachusetts Turnpike Authority officials, facing intense criticism for recommending a large toll increase, said yesterday that the agency saved $31.6 million since January by trimming unnecessary costs.

Alan LeBovidge, the authority's executive director, had previously estimated that he would save $15 million through cost reductions this year. He is scheduled to testify before a legislative oversight committee this morning and face questioning about the authority's proposed toll increase, which would raise up to $100 million annually.

LeBovidge hopes to show that the authority is trying to cut waste as it tries to find money to avoid a financial collapse. But many legislators are still insisting that he can meet his expenses with a smaller toll increase.

"I'm not convinced, even if there were no [cost-savings], that they need that big of a hike," said Senator Steven A. Baddour, a Methuen Democrat who is cochairman of the transportation committee.

LeBovidge said he took the savings into account when he proposed the increase, which would double tolls to $7 at the Ted Williams and Sumner tunnels and raise them to $2 at the Weston and Allston-Brighton booths.

Most of the savings, about $21 million, came from cutting consultants, including many who were employed to work on the Big Dig, LeBovidge said. LeBovidge criticized the authority's heavy dependence on consultants when he took over leadership more than a year ago.

"Everything had a life of its own," LeBovidge said. "The Big Dig's supposed to be over."

The authority also trimmed 135 staff positions to reduce salary costs by $4.8 million and it cut overtime by $2.4 million. Unions have criticized LeBovidge for giving some managers promotional pay raises this year, but LeBovidge said they were necessary to cover positions that were cut and were far outweighed by the savings from the lost positions.

In the coming months, LeBovidge plans to trim 100 toll collectors to save an additional $8 million to $11 million. He will also stop mailing monthly statements to Fast Lane users and move to an online system early next year.

LeBovidge's final cost-cutting idea, expected to generate more than $1 million a year for the agency, is sure to draw anger from commuters: Beginning early next year, all drivers who go through the Fast Lane without a transponder will be mailed $50 citations. In the past, first-time violators were granted amnesty.

The Joint Committee on Transportation is scheduled to hold a hearing at 11 a.m. today in the State House to discuss Governor Deval Patrick's plans to dissolve the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority and reorganize other aspects of the state's transportation system.

Noah Bierman can be reached at nbierman@globe.com.