A robust transportation system fuels economic growth, and a sustainable funding source drives a robust system. Imagine a Connecticut that maintains its highways and bridges on schedule, provides an integrated system of buses, ferries and trains, and leverages its infrastructure to make it easier for residents to commute to and from work, shopping and recreation.
Imagine a Connecticut that is linked effectively to the national and global economies, that is valued for its transportation technology and that leverages its transportation system to compete for jobs, capital and talent.
The Connecticut Transportation Strategy Board (TSB), augmented by the MetroHartford Alliance, has articulated such a vision with specific local projects. Our vision includes one-hour rail service that links Hartford to New York and Boston and provides mass transit to Bradley International Airport, as well as completion of the New Britain-to-Hartford busway.
Both initiatives would create development opportunities integrating transportation with housing, offices and retail. Implementing specific vision components now will stimulate the Connecticut economy by providing jobs while strengthening our infrastructure for decades to come.
Phase In Gas Tax
However, without adequate funding, our vision will remain a figment of our imagination. That is why the alliance is working with other state leaders to secure necessary funding.
Today, the state’s Special Transportation Fund (STF) is woefully inadequate to maintain our existing infrastructure and complete the expansion needed to compete successfully in the global economy.
The STF depends primarily on the gasoline tax, a shrinking source of revenue. The 1998 reduction of 15 cents per gallon eliminated almost $225 million in annual STF revenue, and the recent decline in gasoline consumption has further eroded STF funding.
Without adequate and sustainable revenues, Connecticut cannot meet its matching requirements for current transportation projects and risks being left out of any new federal stimulus packages that require matching funds. To address the STF shortfall, the alliance and other state leaders will be working for the enactment of two funding initiatives during the upcoming legislative session.
The first would restore the 15 cents per gallon tax incrementally, raising the tax by 3 cents per gallon for five consecutive years, beginning on July 1. The second initiative would establish an electronic toll system no later than July 1, 2011.
The Alliance ties its support for these potential funding sources to two requirements: that revenues raised would be secured in a dedicated lockbox segregated from the general fund and that the priorities for investing such funds would be determined by the TSB.
The latter condition ensures that the money is spent in a way that recognizes the evolving transportation needs of our residents and businesses.
Moreover, the proposed gasoline tax increase would bridge us financially to the establishment of a modern electronic toll system similar to those used by our Northeastern neighbors. Such tolls would be paid by all users of our highways, including non-residents who travel through Connecticut.
Local Matches
As gasoline consumption declines and investment in alternative fuels rises, the STF will require a new source for the billions of dollars required for transportation maintenance and expansion. An electronic toll system is the only viable option.
The alliance will also add its voice to ensure that Connecticut receives its share of federal transportation funds. We will work with federal, state and local officials during the upcoming debate over the structure of the new federal reauthorization bill.
That bill, scheduled to be implemented in October, will likely result in sweeping changes in how federal funds are allocated for innovative proposals such as those in the TSB vision. A primary focus of funding will be the transportation modes required for economic growth. Stabilizing and growing the STF is therefore critical to Connecticut’s ability to compete successfully for any federal funding requiring local matches.
The TSB vision positions the state for immediate and long-term economic growth, but we must act together and with genuine urgency to achieve it.
R. Nelson “Oz” Griebel is president and CEO of the MetroHartford Alliance.
