Again, don't act so surprised.

Governor Deval Patrick, who has been reluctant to propose higher tolls on the Massachusetts Turnpike, now says "there is simply no way around an increase in the short run."

Patrick included the admission in an op-ed column in today's Globe (Page A19) that chronicles the dismal financial condition of the agency, which he says was depleted by years of neglect and mismanagement by past administrations, and lays out his plan for restoring the state's transportation system to health.

The comments were published the day before the Turnpike Authority board is set to vote on toll hikes of as much as $1 at the Weston and Allston-Brighton tollbooths, where drivers currently pay $1.25, or as much as $5 at the Sumner and Ted Williams tunnels, where tolls are now $3.50.

Drivers would probably face a blend of those options as the board considers its second increase in as many years to help close a budget deficit and cover the cost of paying off the Big Dig.

Turnpike Authority board members said yesterday that they are considering a variety of scenarios in advance of tomorrow's meeting and have not received a specific recommendation from the authority's staff or board chairman Bernard Cohen, who is Patrick's transportation secretary and designee on the board.

"I'm not ready to say what I'm going to recommend," Cohen said. "I can't predict what the board will do."

UPDATE: More from Michael Graham, Gov. Patrick and Joan Vennochi.

SECOND UPDATE: From the Herald.

THIRD UPDATE: From the Globe and Herald.