CAWP Legislative News 6-10

Study Calls for $3 Billion Annually for Transportation in PA

The Pennsylvania Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC) recently released a study calling from the new funding of more than $3 billion annually for highways and transit from federal, state and local sources. The study was commissioned as a follow-up to the Transportation Funding and Reform Commission (TFRC) Report of 2006. The primary purpose was to update a summary of the major trends and issues affecting transportation revenues, and identify the gaps in funding needed to meet a growing inventory of transportation infrastructure needs as they relate to highways, bridges, and public transportation.

According to the study, the most immediate problem for Pennsylvania is the reduction of Act 44 revenue based on the federal decision to not approve the application to toll I-80. Based on this decision, there will be an immediate decrease of $472 million in current funding for highways and transit.

While the rejection of tolling I-80 is an immediate concern, the report highlights a much larger problem facing transportation infrastructure, the lack of a long-term solution. “Beyond this reduction, Pennsylvania’s gap between transportation improvement needs and revenue is substantial. This report identifies more than $3 billion annually in highway and transit needs that currently cannot be addressed. This gap between needs and revenues will continue to grow as inflation erodes the buying power of transportation dollars and improvements in fuel efficiency reduce the revenues being received.”

With Pennsylvania infrastructure in a state of crisis, short-term fixes will no longer provide a solution to this funding problem. Pennsylvania must develop a phased, long-term funding strategy to sustain progress that has been made to improve the condition of aging bridges and roadways. Having such a long-term view will positively affect general business investment by avoiding the boom and bust funding cycles of the past.

The TAC recognizes that the current recession makes this a difficult time to increase transportation revenue. However, Pennsylvania’s economy depends on the transportation system, and investments in transportation do create jobs. FHWA and FTA have both estimated that at least 30,000 jobs are directly and indirectly created for every $1 billion in highway or public transportation expenditures.