The District of Columbia would join a growing number of jurisdictions worldwide that use tolls to control traffic in downtown areas under a proposal pushed by several members of the D.C. Council.

Led by Ward 8’s Marion Barry, the lawmakers want to explore the idea of erecting toll booths at key entrances to the city, such as the 14th Street Bridge, New York Avenue, Pennsylvania Avenue or Interstate 295.

Congress has banned the District from imposing a tax on commuters, but the tolls would give the city a way to extract money from the hundreds of thousands of Marylanders and Virginians who use the District’s streets to get to work.

The tolls could have another impact, which would also improve the lives of city residents — less traffic during rush hours. In London, tolls were used successfully to cut congestion in the city’s worst traffic-clogged regions. In 2003, within two months of implementing the equivalent of $8 tolls on motorists driving into the busiest sections of the city, London officials said traffic dropped 20 percent and bus ridership increased significantly.

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New York City is studying whether to impose tolls during rush hour. Locally, Virginia plans to build three toll lanes on Interstate 95 and Interstate 395 where the price will vary by the time of day and level of congestion, and encourage ride-sharing by allowing car pools to ride for free.

The automobile club AAA Mid-Atlantic has come out against the idea, saying the tolls will keep Maryland and Virginia residents in their respective states and hurt the city’s economy.

A local researcher, however, predicted the tolls would lessen the rush-hour crunch without hurting businesses. The region’s residents would still come into the city, but will carpool or take public transportation.

“I wouldn’t drive downtown and pay tolls by myself, but you will see people adjust,” said Stephen Fuller, a professor at George Mason University who studies the D.C. area. “People respond to incentives after a while.”

As much as he likes the idea of tolls on heavily used downtown streets, Fuller said Congress would certainly kill any proposals because their constituents will not want to pay.

“This has no chance of happening,” he said.

jrogalsky@dcexaminer.com