The national transportation trust fund—which provides funding for all kinds of transportation projects including highway maintenance, bridge repair and public transit—is predicted to go bankrupt later this year. When that happens, most states and dozens of metropolitan areas will lose the majority of the money they need to maintain and improve their transportation networks.
How much will your city or region lose? A new report out today from Smart Growth America’s Transportation for America campaign examines that very question.
The End of the Road? The looming fiscal disaster for transportation shows the dollar amounts each state and metro will be forced to forego if Congress does not act to avert the insolvency of the Highway Trust Fund. The shortfall is a result of lower than expected collections of revenue from a gas tax that has not changed since 1993, despite rapidly rising construction costs.
Unless Congress adds new revenue to the trust fund, the federal government will be unable to commit to funding any new transportation projects, depriving states and localities of resources critical to maintaining and improving the infrastructure that makes our economy possible.
Now is the time for Congress to take action. The federal transportation bill, which sets investment levels for the trust fund along with many other programs, expires on October 1. The Obama Administration just released its proposal for the bill yesterday, meaning now is the perfect time to ask Congress to take action on transportation.
Speak out: Tell Congress to find a stable source of income for all modes of transportation.
As Members of Congress reconsider this important piece of legislation, they need to hear from advocates like you to refocus federal transportation policy on locally-driven, innovative transportation solutions.
Read more: “The End of the Road? The Looming Fiscal Disaster for Transportation”