LIKE many other northern Ohioans, I have a personal interest in the Ohio Turnpike. Like some, I have a commuter's intimacy with the pike. We go way back.

As a kid, I traversed the turnpike in a family station wagon, when two lanes sufficed and tolls were a coin toss. As an adult, I find that driving the three-lane autobahn the road has become, with compacts and semis clocking at least 80 mph, also requires flush billfolds for the tolls.

Ever since toll rates shot up 82 percent in 1999, followed by smaller increases in 2007 and 2009, we've had to dig deeper into our wallets for the privilege of using the 241-mile highway. The broken promise that the route would be toll-free after construction bonds were paid off is ancient history.

We've accepted the cash cow, which cuts across northern Ohio between Pennsylvania and Indiana, as indispensable. We rationalize that the hundreds of millions of dollars it collects in toll revenue each year is the price we have to pay for a well-maintained road with updated service plazas.

In punishing Ohio winters, we expect the turnpike to provide safer driving conditions than toll-free options. The pike does not depend on whatever the state transportation department sends for snow removal or road repair.

The turnpike is a reliable asset for regular and seasonal traffic with an enviable revenue stream. Politicians and transportation officials who must grapple with budget shortfalls are coveting a piece of the toll road action.

Gov. John Kasich is not unique in eyeing the turnpike as a quick fix for state budget woes. The idea of privatizing public roads is increasingly gaining traction among states that are desperate for short-term revenue relief.

Mr. Kasich came into office convinced that privatization was key to cutting costs and raising cash. He has ushered through changes in state law that allow him to pursue a lease of the turnpike to a private operator and clinch a business deal for billions.

The General Assembly must approve a request for leasing proposals prepared by the administration, but need not sign off on the final agreement. The governor is betting Ohio could get as much as $3 billion for the pike up front.

It's money the governor says could be used on infrastructure projects. But how the one-time windfall is divvied up and who benefits are unclear. So is whether the payoff will come close to matching the long-term value of the toll road and its income over the course of the lease.

Other threats to the public interest must be addressed before Mr. Kasich gives away another state asset for short-term gain.

If it were obvious that a private investor could do a better job of running and maintaining the turnpike with reasonable tolls, those who use and pay for the pike the most would applaud change. But losing public control of a key transportation artery in the state is an unsettling proposition that may have grave implications down the road.

From compromised safety to lost transparency, the pitfalls of privatizing a public asset such as the turnpike demand critical evaluation and cautious navigation. Nothing can be left to chance or promises of oversight.

Private operators, driven to maximize profits for shareholders, are not primarily concerned about potential costs to the public. That's the task of public officials.

Politicians such as Mr. Kasich argue that the private sector can cut waste and deliver services more efficiently than government. In some cases that may be true, but each debate over public versus private provision of government services should revolve around the greater good.

Would shifting control of the Ohio Turnpike to a private investor mean cutting corners on maintenance to save money, or raising tolls to pad company profits? What safeguards would guarantee protection of the public against unscrupulous vendors?

The foreign consortium that runs the Indiana Toll Road is blamed for more than doubling tolls in five years and letting upkeep lapse. Indiana may rue the day it leased its turnpike to private investors, but Ohio doesn't have to make the same mistake.

Marilou Johanek is a Blade commentary writer.

Contact her at: mjohanek@theblade.com

First Published August 18, 2011, 4:15 a.m.