Vermonters ready for action on roads, bridges
Toolbox
By Charlie Smith - Published: December 18, 2008
In spite of the down economy, Vermonters want action to curb the deterioration of their roads and bridges. In recent surveys by the Snelling Center for Government, 463 online respondents and 70 business leaders arrived at three major points of consensus. First, bridge restoration is the single highest transportation priority and very high as an overall priority for the state budget. Second, political leaders need to make the necessary compromises to fund a long term plan to restore the infrastructure. Third, major public borrowing, in the hundreds of millions of dollars, should be used to accelerate road and bridge restoration work.
Vermonters understand that action on roads and bridges will require a major and sustained increase in spending. Equally, they understand that further delay will come at an extreme future cost. They see how the Town of Richmond was isolated when the bridge failed, and recognize that the same could happen all over the state. They read that $250,000 in well-timed preventive maintenance would have prevented a $2.5 million culvert project. At a personal level, they feel the damage to their cars with every bump and pothole. Vermonters are realists. They want to be told the truth and they want problems to be answered with practical, forward looking solutions.
Faced with falling revenue, our political leaders appear headed for another stalemate on how to pay for a long-term plan for roads and bridges. The treasurer's suggestion of a 5 cent gas tax increase has drawn predictable opposition. The Governor's suggestion that the $20 million Education Fund surplus be spent on transportation also drew predictable fire. The Legislature is certain to dig in hard to protect the $33 million in transportation revenue that is transferred to augment general spending. Most of the players are clinging to old positions or waiting for a short-term fix from Washington, while the problem grows worse every day.
By comparison, Vermonters who took the Snelling Center's survey agreed that stalemate is, in fact, the worst outcome. The overwhelming advice to political leaders was to compromise around a combination of new taxes, the education surplus, and other fund transfers. Borrow a large amount of money while long-term rates are low and, once and for all, pick up the pace on a long-term and sustained program to preserve the infrastructure.
Roads and bridges represent Vermont's single biggest public investment and maintaining them in decent condition is among the most basic responsibilities of government. They are enormously important to the growth of the economy and the viability of our communities. After decades of deferred maintenance, they are wearing out. The message from the Snelling Center survey is that Vermonters want their leaders to step up to this challenge and put us on a sustainable long-term course.
The full report and critical data guide are available at snellingcenter.org.
Charlie Smith is president of the Snelling Center for Government and former Secretary of Administration for the State of Vermont.
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