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Subject: America's Highway Crisis
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Rich Daub
Posts:1
08/22/2006 1:19 PM Alert 

The roads are covered with potholes, there are too many cars, and there are insufficent government funds to pay for their maintenance and upgrade.

Can anything be done to improve the state of our nation's highways? Or will they simply continue to deteriorate?

 
philip studer (guest)
10/02/2006 11:37 AM Alert 
The highway crisis can be alliviated by creative thinking. If flatcars were placed on all trains entering major cities, and ramps placed at each stop, passengers could drive on and relax until reaching their destination, driving off. This would reduce the need to build ever larger parking lots at terminals, expand the ridership of suburban lines, reduce cogestion on rush-hour overloaded roads, eliminate waiting for taxi or ground transport to place of business, school, or factory. The feasibility of this approach can be seen by the success of rail/truck transport. It potentially could reverse the demise of dying center cities, save countless hours of wasted time in stalled traffic, and bring people to work in a better less stressed mood.
elmer henning (guest)
10/03/2006 11:23 PM Alert 
All tollroads should be eliminated and paid for by federal and state motor fuel taxes. In Illinois a promise was made that when the bonds were paid off the tollway would be a freeway. This could have happened in 1984, but new bonds were issued and our tollway office building was built at a cost of $26 million dollars. Then tollway I-88 was extended and this would keep the tollway in debt until 2013. In 2005 cash tolls were doubled and open road tolling was installed at a cost of $337 million dollars, besides $80 Million spent on I-Pass. Now debt is until 2037 which includes widening and extending tollway 355. Now it looks like our tollway will be in business forever. Our legislators created the tollway and they could make it a freeway by raising the motor furl tax a few cents. Then the cost of collecting the money would be included in motor fuel tax paid at the gas pump. Tolls are taxes and when you drive on a tollway you are paying tolls and motor fuel tax. This is double taxation.
Zach Cheney
Posts:324
10/05/2006 12:36 PM Alert 

Speaking of toll roads, Elmer, what do you think of this story?

Should states be selling toll roads to private firms?
jack epstein (guest)
10/08/2006 12:13 AM Alert 
strongly support Elmer's posting on the "highway crisis".The American Petroleum Institute says that the average state and federal tax on gasoline is $.42/gallon. With 243 million vehicles driving 10,000 miles/yr consuming 1 gallon of gas for each 25 miles traveled, we generate over $40 billions. That is not exactly chump change. Has there been any public accounting for the money collected and spent on the gasoline tax?

Before privatizing roads there are other issues that need to be explained. What does the state charge the consortium that "operates" the roads for law enforcement and other collateral administrative issues? I am assuming that in the states where roads have been privatized that this has been provided for. Article 3 of the series on this subject did not address this at all. I mention this because I haven't seen the other 2 articles that have been written about the subject. The operation of these roads by a private group, if it does come to pass, must be treated as a public utility with the same sort of supervision that our electric power and gas companies receive.

It is not strange that Kansas roads have experienced the same administrative manipulations that the Illinois roads have. And I wouldn't be surprised if there are parallel experiences in the other 48 states. Before the issue of road privatization goes any further some fundamental serious issues need to be addressed. The conditions under which operations function needs a thorough public airing.
Matt Jeanneret (guest)
10/24/2006 1:46 PM Alert 

Rich:

I saw your note on the conditions of America's highways and have seen some of your other highway articles (Mineta and the Interstate 50th).  In fact, there is something that Congress could be doing to address the nation's worsening highway conditions, but it's gonna take political will, among other things.

My organization, the American Road & Transportation Builders Association, is pushing a new vision for the nation's highways and transit systems.  Maybe you might be interested in learning more about it and could write on the topic.

If so, please shoot me an e-mail at mjeanneret@artba.org or call me at 202-289-4434.

Thanks.

Regards,

Matt

 
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