Lots more $ needed for roads

Manufacturing & Technology News, March 13, 2007

State, federal and local governments are spending a lot more on highways, but there isn't much to show for it, reports the U.S. Department of Transportation. Spending on construction of new roads needs to increase immediately by 87.4 percent in order for Americans to reduce the time they spend in traffic jams, says the agency.

Between 1997 and 2004, the total amount spent on highway and bridge construction and maintenance increased by 44.7 percent to $147.5 billion. Road construction spending increased from $48 billion to $70 billion. But this spending on roads needs to increase to $132 billion (in constant 2004 dollars) in order for the nation's highway system to improve.

Most of the money being spent by state and local governments is being directed toward "system rehabilitation." Between 1997 and 2004, spending on fixing highways and bridges increased by 58 percent, from $23 billion to $36 billion.

The nation's highways are still not in very good shape, however. The percentage of vehicle miles traveled on pavement considered to be of "good" quality has increased from 39 percent in 1997 to 44 percent in 2004. Twenty-seven percent of bridges were considered to be "deficient" in 2004, better than the 30 percent in 1998. "Despite the historic investment in highway infrastructure and improving conditions on many roads and bridges, operational performance--the quality of use of that infrastructure--has continued to deteriorate," says the Transportation Department. "From 1997 to 2004, the estimated percentage of travel occurring under congested conditions has risen from 27.4 percent to 31.6 percent. The average length of congested conditions has risen from 6.2 hours per day in 1997 to 6.6 hours per day."

In order for the country's roads to be adequately maintained the average annual investment must increase to $79 billion (in constant 2004 dollars) and increase by 12 percent each year until 2024.

To view the report, "2006 Status of the Nation's Highways, Bridges and Transit: Conditions and Performance, Report to Congress from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration," go to http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policy/2006cpr/index.htm.>

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