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TxDOT Running Out of Funds for New Mobility Projects as Maintenance Needs Grow
At the September 27 meeting of the Texas Transportation Commission, agency officials presented a grim picture: the state is fast running out of money for new capacity projects.
This scenario is largely due to a convergence of factors: the need to maintain an aging infrastructure, the erosion of purchasing power through inflation, and state and federal legislation that prevents new sources of funding or diverts existing revenue sources. As a result, the department is predicting that no new congestion-relief projects can begin after the 2008 fiscal year, which began September 1st of this year.
Texas’ road maintenance needs are increasing, meaning more funds will be needed to reach planned maintenance targets. And because TxDOT will not build what it cannot maintain, the agency is faced with moving funds planned for projects that improve congestion into maintenance projects that preserve the state’s aging highway system.
To put it another way, the state has many congestion-relief projects planned that will not move forward unless additional revenue sources are found. As Commissioner Ned Holmes said, “The people of Texas need to understand that within a very short period of time, there will be no money for mobility projects.”
For a visual representation of the department’s cash flow, please view this chart.
