Time to Consider a New Way to Pay
For Road Repairs
A column by Senator Pat Browne
16th Senatorial District
The substandard condition and future needs of
Pennsylvania's highway infrastructure is an issue
that plagues transportation leaders in Harrisburg.
We've consistently scored low
— and even
at the bottom —
of surveys conducted of the nation's truck drivers,
the men and women who may have the best
institutional knowledge of the highway system.
Recently, Pennsylvania added another blot to its
ledger of highway and bridge woes as a report by the
American Society of Civil Engineers gave us rather
dismal ratings for our transportation system. The
engineers reported that 27 percent of Pennsylvania's
roads are rated as mediocre or poor, significantly
higher than the national average of 18 percent. Of
our 22,276 bridges, 25 percent were considered
structurally deficient and 18 percent were
considered functionally obsolete. Those are not
reassuring statistics by any means.
Transportation officials often point to factors that
make the challenge of maintaining an adequate
highway system more daunting than other
jurisdictions must face. Pennsylvania has more than
76,000 miles of highways, of which nearly 40,000 are
state maintained —
the fourth largest state-maintained system in the
nation. And, that doesn't include the more than
4,560 miles the state has turned over to local
control since the passage of Act 32 of 1983.
Furthermore, Pennsylvania's highway system is very
old. Many of our roadways follow colonial pathways,
suitable for horse-drawn vehicles, but not of proper
design and engineering to handle the ever-increasing
load of heavy trucks.
Past practice in Pennsylvania has been to fund
highway and bridge maintenance through a mix of user
fees and by imposing liquid fuels taxes. With
gasoline prices remaining near $3 per gallon, this
isn't a time to even consider increasing that tax.
Even so, as the engineers' report shows, we need to
find new ways to address this challenge.
One innovative financing approach that is building
momentum throughout the country is leveraging the
present value of existing highway assets through
public-private partnerships. By converting the
projected future positive cash flow from the
Pennsylvania Turnpike system into a lump sum
investment by a private enterprise, the commonwealth
will have available to it billions of dollars to
make necessary highway capital improvements.
Several jurisdictions have already realized the
value of this approach over the last several years.
Chicago took in a $1.83 billion up-front payment in
consideration for a 99-year lease of the 7.8 mile
Chicago Skyway. Indiana received $3.8 billion in
consideration of a 75-year lease of its 157-mile
turnpike.
Turning public highways over to private control may
have been unthinkable just a few years ago, but the
market trend shows that mindset is quickly fading
away. Many states, including New Jersey, New York
and Ohio, are considering leasing their toll roads
as a way to raise cash. New Jersey projects that it
may be able to realize over $20 billion in a
transaction involving its 183-mile toll road system.
With Pennsylvania commanding over 583 miles in its
system, an investment of this magnitude is highly
probable for the commonwealth as well. Such a
capital infusion would not only allow us to address
all our pending infrastructure deficiencies but
modernize our transportation network well beyond
what present and projected liquid fuel tax receipts
could provide.
One of the biggest concerns about privatization had
been that it would lead to unrestrained toll
increases. A sudden, steep toll hike would be a
dual-edged sword as it would inevitably lead some
motorists to avoid the cost by using free motorways.
However, Chicago and Indiana addressed that concern
by including restrictive language in their leasing
contracts.
Of course, there is no guarantee that the quality of
maintenance and service would be sustained on our
toll routes through a partnership of this magnitude.
Yet, given the infrastructure challenges we face, it
is prudent to evaluate alternative financing, rather
than once again tapping citizens at the gas pump.
When considering such public-private partnerships to
address our transportation challenges, a television
commercial from a few years ago comes to mind. The
ad detailed the cost difference between an oil
change and an engine overhaul caused by running too
long on old oil. We, as a commonwealth, are at a
point where we must consider the wisdom of that
sardonic television mechanic when he said, ''You can
pay me now, or you can pay me later.''
