Transportation infrastructure is the lifeblood of commerce. In Indiana and Illinois, that infrastructure needs a cash infusion.
That's not just because the cost grows every year. It's worsened by a shrinking pool of available dollars.
Federal gasoline tax revenue has grown little since 2007 as increasing fuel economy and alternative fuels become more widely available and more popular. State gas tax revenues, including in Indiana, are also declining. In fiscal year 2014, Indiana collected nearly $527.3 million in gas tax receipts, compared to $540.3 million in fiscal year 2010.
And yet the Indiana Department of Transportation warned last year that the agency needs nearly $260 million more than it is receiving just to maintain existing bridges and highways.
The dwindling road funding dollars take their toll on drivers and vehicles. Across Illinois, poor road conditions cost drivers an extra $3.7 billion in repairs annually, according to TRIP, a transportation advocacy group. And the Chicago area is home of the nation's worst highway bottleneck, at the Jane Byrne Interchange. Congestion in the Chicago area, fueled by the lack of funding for new transportation projects, increases pollution and decreases productivity, along with feeding road rage.
Asphalt roads are good for only about 12 years, and concrete roadways last only three or four decades before they have to be rebuilt. And that work costs money, more than states and local government currently have.
To meet future infrastructure needs, Indiana and Illinois must retool their transportation funding mechanism. As vehicles get more fuel-efficient, road funding gets slighted.
One obvious change should be to make all users pay. No more free rides for vehicles that use alternative fuels and currently don’t contribute to road upkeep. That can be accomplished when those vehicles (electric and natural gas) get license plates and stickers each year.
The fuel tax must be increased, too. Indiana's complicated gas tax formula requires numbers to be crunched each month to determine the rate. It replaced the 18 cents-per-gallon tax rate that had been charged until July 1, 2014.
A tax increase won't be popular, but neither are large potholes that result from the beating our roads are taking.
This discussion isn't popular in either Illinois or Indiana, but both states need to come to grips with meeting their transportation needs. Our economy depends on it.