States Strain to Find New Funding Sources for Repair, Maintenance of Roads, Bridges

This story appears in the Dec. 24 & 31 print edition of Transport Topics.

Funding for roads and bridges continued to be the overriding issue for states in 2012 as transportation officials sought new ways to raise revenue.

In Texas, a new tolled highway with the highest speed limit in the nation — 85 miles per hour — opened in October. In Arkansas, voters defied the political pundits and added a half-cent to the sales tax to pay for highways. And in Michigan, construction of a new bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, moved closer to reality.

Arkansas officials credited their political strategy — listing the highways due to be improved — with persuading voters on Nov. 6 to pass the half-cent increase in the state’s 6-cent sales tax for 10 years.

The same strategy did not work in Georgia, however. Voters in Atlanta and most other counties overwhelmingly rejected a proposed 1% increase in the sales tax even though the transportation projects to receive funding were listed.

Michigan voters said no to the owners of the Ambassador Bridge — the existing crossing between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario — and said yes to a $5.3 billion new span.

Manuel “Matty” Moroun and his family have fought construction of a publicly owned bridge, persuading state legislators to block the project.

When Gov. Rick Snyder circumvented legislators in June by signing an agreement with Canada, the Morouns collected signatures to put the measure on the ballot that would have required voter approval for an international bridge.

In Texas, officials have solved transportation funding problems by building tolled highways. The latest is a 41-mile stretch of State Highway 130 between Austin and San Antonio that opened Oct. 24 with a speed limit of 85 mph.

The toll road is the first in Texas built and operated by a private developer that will collect the tolls for the life of the 50-year state contract and gave the state $100 million under a contractual agreement for allowing the 85-mph speed limit.

American Trucking Associations and various automobile and safety groups criticized the speed limit.

Meanwhile, carriers and an array of businesses that depend on the New York State Thruway for the movement of freight spent much of the year fighting a proposed 45% increase in truck tolls.

The Thruway said it needs the new revenue to pay off debt that would allow for the sale of new bonds to pay for the replacement of the Tappan Zee Bridge, which the Thruway also operates.

Originally, the Thruway board of directors wanted the toll increase for trucks to take effect in November but has twice canceled scheduled votes on the tolls.

Kansas truckers this year won repeal of the state’s 56-year-old property tax on trucks, tractors and trailers. In April, Gov. Sam Brownback signed a bill that created a replacement tax — a new commercial vehicle fee to be paid by both intrastate and interstate carriers.

The new fee, which takes effect in 2014, is based on truck weight, and the system is closely aligned with the International Registration Plan so that carriers will pay the fee each year when they renew their registrations.

The fee will then be automatically apportioned to states based on how many miles the carrier runs there.

Six more states passed laws this year to protect carriers from having to sign contracts that require them to assume all liability for accidents even though they are not responsible.

The six states with new anti-indemnification laws are: Alabama, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Minnesota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

Three state trucking associations experienced leadership changes in 2012.

Karen Rasmussen, president of the Arizona Trucking Association, left Nov. 15 to become president and CEO of Help Inc., or Heavy Vehicle Electronic License Plate, the provider of PrePass and other technology services for truckers. Her successor has not yet been chosen.

Vic Sheppard, managing director of the New Mexico Trucking Association, announced that he is retiring Jan. 1. His successor is Gail Peters, who was director of administration for Help.

David Creer, executive director of the Utah Trucking Association, also retired this year and was replaced in November by Rick Clasby, the former CEO at Help.