HARRISBURG -- First there was Gov. Ed Rendell's plan to lease the 530-mile Pennsylvania Turnpike to a private operator, which might pay as much as $18 billion for the right to operate the cash-generating toll road for up to 99 years.

In response, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, which has run the toll road since it opened 67 years ago, countered with a plan that would not only preserve its existence and power but could extend its control to other roads, like Interstate 80, which would be given toll status.

Now state Rep. Joe Markosek, D-Monroeville, chairman of the House Transportation Committee, has proposed a third option.

Like the governor, Mr. Markosek wants to get rid of the turnpike commission, but unlike Mr. Rendell, Mr. Markosek wants to create a new state agency that would run the turnpike and any other major highways that the Legislature decides to turn into toll roads, such as I-80, I-79 or I-81.

Mr. Markosek yesterday proposed a "Pennsylvania Transportation Finance Authority,'' which he said "would have the power to acquire, operate, manage and maintain the Pennsylvania Turnpike and other toll roads.'' It would also have the power to float bonds for necessary turnpike improvements, oversee the workforce and collect tolls.

His legislation, which he plans to introduce within a couple weeks, would "sunset'' the current turnpike commission, putting it out of existence in two years.

The Markosek plan is expected to provoke a political battle. The turnpike commission is resisting the Rendell plan to lease the road to a private operator. The commission has many allies in the Legislature and has long been known for its patronage hiring practices, meaning that its 2,300 employees include family members and friends of legislators and other Pennsylvania politicians.

Mr. Markosek said he doesn't like the governor's idea of turning an important asset like the turnpike over to a private company for up to 99 years. He thinks the state needs to keep control over such a vital road, as well as any additional roads that are designated to have tolls.

If his new agency to oversee the turnpike is created, he wants to reduce patronage by having candidates for employment hired through the state's Civil Service system.

Turnpike spokesman Bill Capone declined comment on the Markosek plan.

The legislator had other ideas to change the way transportation is operated in the state:

He wants the Department of Transportation to reduce, from 11 to three, the number of its maintenance districts. He wants PennDOT to have districts for the western, central and eastern areas of the state. Fewer districts would simplify purchasing and reduce situations where road paving abruptly stops at the boundary of one of the 11 current districts.

He wants to create a new mass transit funding formula that would replace what he says is an unnecessarily complicated system of funding agencies that run buses, trolleys and trains. He said he won't be ready to give details for a couple weeks but said he'll push for a system that contains a greater share of local funding for transit, as well as a simplified way for the state to provide its share.

Currently there are about nine pieces of funding that go into the state's share of the costs, including a small portion of the sales tax. The state provides about two-thirds of the budget for most transit agencies, which is far more than most states provide, Mr. Markosek said. He and other legislators want counties or other local authorities to pick up a greater share of the cost.

He wants Auditor General Jack Wagner to have more power to audit the books of transit agencies like SEPTA in the Philadelphia area and the Port Authority in Allegheny County. Some legislators have complained that the current management procedures of transit agencies are bloated and inefficient, and they are reluctant to provide more state funding until corrections are made.

Mr. Markosek admitted he faces serious obstacles in getting his proposals enacted, but said he's hoping some ideas could be accomplished before the Legislature goes on summer break in late June or early July.