Fixing MoDOT--cause it's going to be real broken, real soon

 

But everyone I spoke to after the meeting seemed to think that, if anything, I hadn't been forceful enough in explaining the real situation.

 

As the old saying goes, crisis equals opportunity--and there is a major crisis facing MoDOT in the immediate future.

 

That could mean a huge opportunity for those who would like to see Missouri's transportation priorities changed.

 

Of course, it could also mean disaster, as our road and highway system falls apart without even enough funding for routine maintenance!

MoDOT funding crisis by 2012
As we learned from Jewell Patek of the Missouri Transportation Alliance and Beth Wright, District Engineer for MoDOT District 4, MoDOT as we know it is very close to coming to a halt.

MoDOT's typical budget for projects now is about $1.4 to $1.5 billion per year.

Somewhere around $600 million is dedicated to maintaining Missouri's road system--over 32,000 miles of it.

By 2012, MoDOT's entire funding level is projected to be at about $400 million.
 

In short, MoDOT's budget would be less than 1/3 what it is today, and below the level needed for routine maintenance.

Gas tax on its last legs
To make matters worse, the consensus--not just in Missouri but around the country--seems to be that the old standby, the gasoline tax, is on its last legs.

The problem is that rising gas prices, pressure for better fuel economy, alternative fuels and power sources (electric, hybrid), and fewer miles driven are all conspiring to make less gasoline sold from year to year.

 

Less gasoline sold means less income from gas taxes.

At this point it would be hard to raise the gas tax enough to make up for that lost ground--let alone raise it the additional 15 cents or so per gallon it would take to get the MoDOT budget back on an even keel. (And then how to tackle the problem of the continually declining amount of gasoline sold from that point forward?)

 

To make matters worse, Patek pointed out that only 7% of Missourians support any increase in current gas taxes.

The opportunity
The opportunity is that--if Missouri is to continue to have a statewide system of roads--new funding sources will need to be found.

Almost certainly, some of the funding will come from new, non-automobile-related sources--not gas tax, not sales tax on automobiles.

As unpleasant as some of those other potential funding sources are (sales tax? income tax? property tax? mileage tax?), the potential is that with a diversified funding source we could, finally, have a truly diverse transportation system as well--one that includes bicycling, walking, transit, rail, high-speed rail, and who knows what else.

What should Missouri's future transportation system look like?
One of the things the Missouri Transportation Alliance is asking people to do, is talk to them and give them feedback about the future Missouri transportation system--what do you think it should look like.

What should it include?

What principles should it follow?