Washington state ports are opposing an influential legislator’s plan to tax containers to pay for transportation projects that would help move freight. The ports should offer an alternative way to pay for the improvements.

An extra per-container charge would steer more traffic to rivals in Vancouver or California, which are already competing effectively because of superior transportation links to larger markets. Yet, with rising construction costs making the regional to-do list more daunting, it’s not enough to expect voters to pay entirely through up-front taxes. Why not advocate congestion pricing across the region, which would alleviate crowding on roads and provide incentives to use alternate transportation.