THE CONDITION OF OUR SURFACE TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE

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THE CONDITION OF OUR SURFACE
TRANSPORTATIONINFRASTRUCTURE

• How Do We Adequately Finance Our System?

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• The 2013 Infrastructure Report Card prepared by
  the American Society Of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
  evaluates all infrastructure including bridges,
  roads and transit.

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Continued Deterioration of Infrastructure
Conditions
25 (151,497) of Americas bridges are DEFICIENT
42 of major urban highways are CONGESTED
45 of Americans LACK ACCESS TO TRANSIT
32 of roads are in POOR OR MEDIOCRE CONDITION
11 (66,749) of bridges are STRUCTURALLY
DEFICIENT
90B Economic loss in 2010 due to DEFICIENT
TRANSIT SYSTEMS
Average age of bridges 42 YEARS
Source American Society of Civil Engineers
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Continued Deterioration of Infrastructure
Conditions
Source American Society of Civil Engineers
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Current Revenue Picture

• The major source of funding is from user fees
  from the sale of gasoline.
• The funding issue must be looked at
  retrospectively and prospectively.

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Funding Issues

• Vehicle miles traveled are not increasing.
• Gas user fees have lost 37 percent of its
  purchasing power in the last 30 years.
• There has been a decline in national
  transportation investment as a percentage of
  Gross Domestic Product. (GDP)

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Funding Issues

• The increasing use of alternate fuel vehicles
• Increases in the CAFE standards requiring more
  efficient vehicle engines
• This will require the use of alternate funding
  methods in the future.

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Highway Trust Fund Headwinds Vehicle Miles
Traveled (VMT) Growth Has Stabilized
VMT July 1993 to July 2013 (Moving 12 Month
Total)
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Gradual Decline In National Transportation
Investment
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U.S. National Investment in Infrastructure Lowest
Among Developed Countries
WEC Western European Counties
CEEC Central Eastern European Countries
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Highway Trust Fund Headwinds Gas Tax Has Lost
Its Purchasing Power
52 Purchasing Power Loss by 2023
37 Purchasing Power Loss by 2012
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POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS

• OR
• Where do we go from here?

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Available Options

• RAISE GASOLINE USER FEES
• (GAS TAXES)
• There is always great resistance to raising gas
  taxes.

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Option One (Cont)

• The gas tax is really a user fee exactly like
  utility bills, telephone and cell phone service,
  internet service, etc.
• Raising the gas user fee 10 cents per gallon is a
  small amount as show in the following example.

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Gas Tax Example

• The following example is based on Ohio residency.
  The numbers can be adjusted for your own
  locality.
• Assume driving 15,000 miles/year
• Assume 25 miles per gallon
• Gas usage is then 800 gallons/year
• Federal Tax is 18.4 cents per gallon
• Ohio tax is 28 cents per gallon

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If You Viewed Transportation as a Utility
Security Services
The total of user fees in the pie chart are
8,302. It reflects services for which we are
charged by the amount we use the service.
Gasoline
Gas/Electric
Sewer/ Water
Phone, TV, Internet
Cell Phone
Assume gasoline price of 3.40/gallon. Annual
calculation based on 800 gallons/year. Annual
cell phone fee based on 65/month.
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Transportation as a Utility (Contd)

• If state and federal gas user fees were raised 20
  cents, it would increase costs by 160/year or
  13.33 per month less than two percent of
  annual user fees.

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Increased Indirect Costs to the Traveling Public
Source American Society of Civil Engineers
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Increased Indirect Costs to the Traveling Public

• While 160/year for additional gasoline revenue
  may seem high, consider that transportation
  improvements will reduce traffic congestion and
  vehicle repairs by several hundred dollars per
  year for drivers resulting in a net savings for
  motorists.

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Other Options Are Needed

• Assuming that user fees are raised to address the
  current funding problems, there is still concern
  for future funding caused by the reduced use of
  gas.

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New Funding Measures

• New measures could include
• Charge by the mile traveled.
• Alternate revenue sources as a sales tax
  (Commonwealth of Virginia).
• Increase vehicle registration fees.
• Import and export fees on transportation energy,
  vehicles, and products.
• Expand the use of user fees such as tolling.
• Public/private partnerships (P3).

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New Funding Measures

• All methods of funding transportation should
  include automatic annual increases to adjust for
  inflation.
• If this is not done then we will again face an
  annual loss in purchasing power for
  infrastructure maintenance and construction.

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THE LEGISLATIVE SOLUTION
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Communication Is Critical

• As engineers, it is our responsibility to bring
  the critical state of our infrastructure to
  legislators and to the public.

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Radio, TV, and Newspapers

• Contact the media to discuss the state of
  infrastructure.
• Take a TV reporter to examine the underside of a
  bridge in need of maintenance.
• Social media methods such as YouTube videos to
  visually describe conditions.
• Prepare letters to the editor.

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State and Federal Legislators

• Educate your legislators.
• Use the phone, e-mail or letters.
• Even small campaign contributions can open the
  door to face to face meetings.
• Host informal coffees at your home.

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Develop Relationships

• By establishing a relationship with state and
  local elected officials, you will have a ready-
  made relationship at the federal level. This
  approach requires a long-term commitment.

40 of federal senators and representatives
were once state and local officials.
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Presentations to Local Groups

• Make presentations to local groups such as
  Optimist or Rotary.
• Prepare handouts of important points and a list
  of legislators with addresses and phone numbers.
  
• Bring a local public official with you if
  possible.

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Key Message

• A modern and well maintained national
  transportation infrastructure is critical to our
  economy and standard of living.

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Together, the united forces of our
communication and transportation systems are
dynamic elements in the very name we bearUnited
States. Without them, we would be a mere alliance
of many separate parts.President Dwight D.
Eisenhower February 22, 1955 www.transportation
.org