Fifty cents on the dollar for Illinois roads

John Latta - May 16, 2013

A road in Naperville, Illinois, undergoes construction in 2009. (Photo: Michael Kappel / Flickr) At a time when funding for roads and bridges--what there is of it--is squeezed to the maximum (a situation that isn’t likely to change any time ...

Where Interstate 20 crosses Interstate Bob

John Latta - May 15, 2013

(Photo: Aijalyn Kohler / Flickr) Are we approaching an intersection, where Public Street and Private Road meet? And if we are, is that intersection a confusing place in need of significant upgrading if it is to benefit the traveling public? Yep. Public-private ...

Virginia governor signs transportation bill into effect

Amanda Bayhi - May 14, 2013

(Photo: Mr. T in DC / Flickr) Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell on Monday signed the state’s transportation bill into effect, CBS DC reported. The Road to the Future bill will enable sweeping, long-term funding for Virginia highway repairs and maintenance. It will ...

Rand Paul introduces bill to fund emergency transportation projects

Amanda Bayhi - May 13, 2013

(Photo: ODOT / Flickr) Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) introduced a bill, S. 911, last week that would create funding for emergency transportation projects, The Hill reported. The Emergency Transportation Safety Fund would create a fund for new construction and repairs of ...

Minnesota cuts tax hikes from transportation bill

Amanda Bayhi - May 09, 2013

U.S. Capitol building (Photo: MaryAnn Doherty / Flickr) The Senate Tax Committee voted yesterday to remove tax increases from the Minnesota’s transportation finance bill, Minnesota Public Radio reported. The committee rejected and removed two particular provisions: a 7.5 cent per gallon ...

Americans prefer tolls to fund transportation projects

Amanda Bayhi - May 06, 2013

I-90 toll booth at Lacey V. Murrow Memorial Bridge, Circa 1940 (Photo: WSDOT / Flickr) The majority of Americans--71 percent--would be willing to pay a higher toll fare to save time, according to the results of the America THINKS 2013 ...

A Private Bridge Funding Success Story

John Latta - Apr 29, 2013

Apparently it can be done. It is possible for states to find and work with private partners for transportation infrastructure projects. Just look at this case from Indiana. Governing magazine noted that Indiana stated trying to find private partners for part of ...

Twenty-two wheels and fourteen roses

Amanda Bayhi - Apr 24, 2013

The debate on whether to allow (or permit states to allow) heavier semis on our roads is wandering around in Congress. (I would say “eighteen wheelers” but some of them would be “twenty-two wheelers” thanks to an extra axle and ...

Two-thirds of Americans would refuse gas tax as transportation, infrastructure funding

Amanda Bayhi - Apr 23, 2013

Two-thirds of Americans would vote against a 20-cent per gallon state tax dedicated to funding road and bridge repairs, according to a Gallup poll released Monday. According to the poll, 66 percent of Americans would reject the gas tax, while only ...

Waiting for DiMaggio

John Latta - Apr 03, 2013

Is the automobile over? Scary thought if fuel taxes continue to be the single biggest contributor to our transportation infrastructure funding structure. And they’re not my words; it’s a headline from Motor Trend magazine last fall. I’m resurrecting this oldie here as ...

Transportation funding talks remain stagnant

Amanda Bayhi - Mar 25, 2013

The debate over transportation funding continues as MAP-21’s expiration date—September 2014—inches closer and closer. Congressional discussions about how to increase funding are seemingly going nowhere, Politico reported. While transportation funding, particularly the Highway Trust Fund, continues to decrease, ideas about an increase ...

President pushes transportation construction speed-up in TV meetings

John Latta - Feb 20, 2013

President Obama is set to sit down today for interviews with half a dozen television stations from major cities to push a plan that will speed up transportation construction projects. This has been a clearly-stated and much publicized goal of ...

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