Everyone knows that the highway being traveled becomes a tad bit rougher after the winter thaw—cracks in the road and potholes being formed—and it is not the noise you hear from driving over the rumble strips either. By the time you read this column, we may have a firmer grip on where we as an industry and as a nation stand on a new highway reauthorization bill—or we may not. With MAP-21 expiring in September, the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) should run out of money pretty much at the very time you are reading this column and those cracks in the road or formed potholes may continue to grow larger since the federal government won’t have the money to fix them. In other words, the empty pockets of the HTF may reveal solely lint.
Obviously, the HTF exists to do more than fill the potholes and repair roadways damaged by extreme weather conditions. But that metaphor always seems to have a certain ring to it when I mention it to my friends and neighbors who inquire as to what the hubbub is about concerning our crumbling infrastructure and the money needed to fix it. Regardless, to improve our roads and bridges, build new ones, and even put people to work to do those things requires funding in the form of a new highway reauthorization bill. While MAP-21 ran its course and provided us with some strong safety titles (drug and alcohol clearinghouse and electronic logging device), I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that the bill failed to address any needed increase in spending. The time has come for legislation that has some financial backing to it.
The very lack of a feasible highway spending bill can and will affect safety on our roads. Revenue that is provided to states to enforce safety programs, rehab our current roads, and fund new construction to help alleviate congestion certainly puts our drivers at the front line of a safety problem that the government continues to juggle without a feasible spending mechanism to address these concerns. To keep our highways safely maintained, our federal, state and local governments need access to money raised by the federal fuel tax to help pay for them.
Quite obviously, this is political posturing at its finest. Most on Capitol Hill won’t propose an increase to the federal fuel tax to support an escalation in financial need to make up for the shortfall that currently exists. To be honest, we have heard it all from our leadership. Increased tolling, corporate tax reform, and general fund transfers will not cut it to improve upon our much publicized crumbling infrastructure. Certainly, the time is now to develop a highway funding plan that makes sense, addresses needed infrastructure improvements, and continues to build upon momentum gained in moving our nation’s people and freight safely.
The time has come to act quickly and decisively. Rather than placing a Band-Aid on a gaping wound, put forth a long-term highway bill that places the needs of this country front and center and fixes a funding shortfall that has been a long time coming.
David Heller, CDS, is director of safety and policy for the Truckload Carriers Assn. He is responsible for interpreting and communicating industry-related regulations and legislation to the membership of TCA. Send comments to [email protected].
